This feature-length film allows audiences a glimpse in]]>"One of the deep roots of Arcade Fire's aesthetic is trying to ignore the world and make art just with the people in the room around you," Arcade Fire matriarch Régine Chassagne expresses in <em>The Reflektor Tapes</em>, a documentary/objet d'art by filmmaker Kahlil Joseph (Beyoncé's <em>Lemonade</em>, Kendrick Lamar short film<em> m.A.A.d.</em>).<br />
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This feature-length film allows audiences a glimpse into the private room she speaks of, where the Montreal band crafted the extraordinary <em>Reflektor </em>(2013), but more than that, it captures moments of its grandiose execution on stage, revealing the distinct conceptual and cultural ideas that shaped the album.<br />
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Among the most prominent of these influences is the band's connection to Haiti; from the chalked "Reflektor Tour" logo that appears to be inspired by <em>veve </em>graffiti, to the steel pan drum rhythms that offer reverence to<em> music rastine</em>, the album's aesthetic and sound are rooted in the birthplace of Chassagne's parents. The film also explores Haitian Carnival, a celebration where elaborate masks and costuming hide one's identity allows one to dance unabashedly, and as frontman Win Butler explains, "puts the politicians and the pope and everyone down in the dirt."<br />
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Although the film refrains from explaining it verbatim, the Carnival-inspired elements of the tour — such as the controversial <a href="http://exclaim.ca/music/article/wtf_arcade_fire_ask_fans_to_wear_formal_attire_costume_for_upcoming_arena_tour">dress code</a> and the band's iconic Big Head masks, which "invert the relationship with the audience" — were clearly designed to place all in attendance on the same level, including Butler and co.<br />
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The film also touches on Arcade Fire's inspiration from Kierkegaard, whose essay <em>The Present Age</em> informed the album's title concept about "living in a reflective age." Though director Joseph limits the use of text in this film, he attempts to explain this theory with a card that reads from the essay: "The present age is one of understanding, of reflection, devoid of passion, an age which fires into enthusiasm for a moment only to decline back into indolence."<br />
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The statement seemingly informs not just the album, but Joseph's directorial approach to <em>The Reflektor Tapes </em>as well. Rather than trying to recreate the tour with lengthy performance clips and narrative accounts (there is little of either), Joseph instead focuses on fleeting moments of humanity; he slows down a high-intensity outburst where Will Butler fervently wails on his drum, and isolates some of Win's emotive vocals from the soundboard.<br />
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These sequences, spliced together with thematically (if tangentially) relevant visuals, better convey Kierkegaard's "moments of enthusiasm" than a traditionally filmed concert documentary could. (For those who still insist on the necessity of complete performance clips, the concert at Earls Court is playable in full on Disc 2).<br />
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While the previously considered cultural references flirt with exploitation, and the explicit nod to Kierkegaard surely adds to what some might consider an air of pretentiousness,<em> The Reflektor Tapes</em> also offers some more tender and genuine glimpses into what inspires Arcade Fire's music. Some brief narrative musings — Chassagne's confession of feeling "invisible," or Butler's illuminating thoughts on romantic love — may seem like incomplete thoughts, but they offer balance to the documentary by reminding us of the fragile human beings beneath the hype, the stadium-sized anthems and oversized plastic heads.<br />
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All this considered, it's Joseph's choice to stray from the standard format of behind-the-scenes music documentaries that makes <em>The Reflektor Tapes</em> such a revealing look into the creation and execution of <em>Reflektor</em> and the ensuing tour. A band like Arcade Fire couldn't be captured in such a chronological, straightforward method.<br />
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Before the film's conclusion, Chassagne concedes that "with <em>Reflektor</em>, a whole 'nother world is open that you could see from a distance before — but now it's another room that you can actually enter." And with <em>The Reflektor Tapes</em>, Joseph has handed us the key to it.<br />
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<i>Order </i>The Reflektor Tapes<em> cassette, featuring rare </em>Reflektor<em> outtakes and remixes, via Umusic <a href="https://shop.umusic.ca/*/*/The-Reflektor-Tapes-Cassette/4W6Z0000000">here</a>.</em><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/MusicDvdExclaimca/~4/aSM3VMOXkbI" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>2017-01-25T17:00:00+00:00http://exclaim.ca/music/article/the_reflektor_tapes-directed_by_kahlil_joseph_and_arcade_fireBradley Zorgdrager http://exclaim.ca/music/article/converge-thousands_of_miles_between_usThe Long Road Home, Converge return with Thousands of Miles Between Us, their latest visual release.

Opening with the chaotic "Concubine," the vis]]>Twelve years and literally thousands of miles since they took <a href="http://exclaim.ca/music/article/converge-long_road_home"><em>The Long Road Home</em></a>, Converge return with <a href="http://exclaim.ca/music/article/converge_detail_thousands_of_miles_between_us_blu-ray_release"><em>Thousands of Miles Between Us</em></a>, their latest visual release.
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<br />Opening with the chaotic "Concubine," the visual cuts are quick here, giving the sense of chaos that comes with one of the band's sets. The fast-paced nature of their music makes the editing feel appropriate, though the visual team behind the release (Jimmy Hubbard, Ian McFarland and the band's own Jacob Bannon) pull back on the speed as necessary, such as on "Worms Will Feed / Rats Will Feast" and set-closer "You Fail Me." Angles swap on cues both musical and visual, with stage-diving fans, hopping band members, air-punches and the outstretched, oft-beckoning appendages of vocalist Bannon all getting screen time.
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<br />The performance is captured from the front, both sides and even from behind; a drum cam to the left of Ben Koller is particularly intriguing, allowing the viewer to see the drummer's intricate and quick playing up close, while observing the sheer excitement he radiates while playing. The good times are matched by Bannon, who interacts with the audience, making jokes, imitating a would-be stage diver's attempt to secure a place to fall when he unexpectedly got caught on stage as a song ended, and slow dancing with an audience member for a few seconds before shoving him into the audience to finish the stage dive he initially stormed the stage to make. It's the kind of stuff that keeps the show human and, well, punk rock, despite playing in the 1,200-capacity Union Transfer in Philadelphia.
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<br />Any quibbles with the to be made about the film are minor: the one camera angle on bassist Nate Newton's side of the stage is noticeably brighter than the others, while a stationary camera behind Koller lacks stability, and fails to capture the visuals as cleanly as the others.
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<br />Sonically, the team of Alan Douches and guitarist/producer Kurt Ballou did an excellent job capturing the audio cleanly enough to encourage listens without the visual accompaniment, a good thing for hardcore Converge fans, who will appreciate live recorded versions of songs new ("Trespasses," "Aimless Arrow," "Glacial Pace," "Tender Abuse") and old ("The Saddest Day," "My Unsaid Everything," "Bitter and Then Some," "The Broken Vow").
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<br />Though there's not a single defining characteristic or anything in particular to set this set apart from any other Converge set — hell, this isn't even in their hometown or even home state — it doesn't need that; the average Converge set, captured well, puts to shame the best production of any other band.
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<br />The digital download of this set will set you back less than an audio download of most new albums at only $5, and if you spring for the physical copy, there are two more discs (over 15 hours) of "live performances, interviews, features, music videos, covers and more."
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<br />Set List:
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<br />"Concubine"
<br />"Dark Horse"
<br />"Heartless"
<br />"Aimless Arrow"
<br />"Trespasses"
<br />"Bitter and Then Some"
<br />"All We Love We Leave Behind"
<br />"Sadness Comes Home"
<br />"My Unsaid Everything"
<br />"Glacial Pace"
<br />"Cutter"
<br />"Worms Will Feed/Rats Will Feast"
<br />"Tender Abuse"
<br />"On My Shield"
<br />"Axe to Fall"
<br />"Empty on the Inside"
<br />"Eagles Become Vultures"
<br />"The Broken Vow"
<br />"You Fail Me"
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<br />Encore:
<br />"The Saddest Day"
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<br /><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="380" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/dARZso-McO4" width="100%"></iframe>
<br /> <img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/MusicDvdExclaimca/~4/0Ftf_rzimBo" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>2015-11-25T17:00:48+00:00http://exclaim.ca/music/article/converge-thousands_of_miles_between_usGlen Hallhttp://exclaim.ca/music/article/fred_hersch_michael_winther_fred_hersch_ensemble-my_coma_dreamsMy Coma Dreams, a jazz/theatre piece that explores Hersch's two-month immersion in a medically induced coma to treat septic shock stemming from his HIV/AIDS.

Singer/actor Michael Wi]]>Pianist/composer Fred Hersch is a musician's musician, an artist of in-the-moment expressiveness. His playing and writing are expansive: from lyrical to abstract, percussive to orchestral. And all of this looms large in <i>My Coma Dreams</i>, a jazz/theatre piece that explores Hersch's two-month immersion in a medically induced coma to treat septic shock stemming from his HIV/AIDS. <br><br>
Singer/actor Michael Winther is both narrator and the embodiment of Hersch himself and those involved with his circumstances. He tells and sings: memories, hallucinatory visions, physical facts of the body's wasting, Hollywood's unrealistic take on the state and reawakening, all accompanied by the pianist and a stellar ten-piece orchestra. The piece weaves humour, pathos, personal history and grim reality through scenes portrayed with music moving through classical orchestral, tango, Broadway and, of course, jazz. Written and directed by Herschel Garfein, with animation by Sarah Wickliffe and computer imagery by Eamonn Farrell, the DVD is being released in honour of World AIDS Day. It's thought- and feeling-provoking creation.<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/MusicDvdExclaimca/~4/xb_LM1ijDAs" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>2014-11-21T17:00:42+00:00http://exclaim.ca/music/article/fred_hersch_michael_winther_fred_hersch_ensemble-my_coma_dreamsMatt Bauerhttp://exclaim.ca/music/article/love_is_message-directed_by_nicky_sianoLove Is The Message a welcome revelation.

Shot at the storied Gallery dance club in 1977, the film offers a look into the New York dance underground when DJ Nicky Siano wa]]>While the early-mid 1970s underground New York proto-disco revolution remains one of the most posthumously celebrated scenes in music history, little, if any, primary footage from the period has seen the light of day, which makes <i>Love Is The Message</i> a welcome revelation. <br><br>
Shot at the storied Gallery dance club in 1977, the film offers a look into the New York dance underground when DJ Nicky Siano was taking the house party-cum-eco-system of David Mancuso's Loft, as well as the technical innovations of New York spinners like Francis Grasso and Michael Cappello, to frenzied new levels. <br><br>
A concise introduction explains the historical background of the period: Stonewall, the Civil Rights Movement, Vietnam et al. before moving into the actual footage. Fans of the era will dig the fashions and the Gallery's interior, but what truly emerges from the pristinely re-mastered picture is the sense of unity that was cultivated at the club, a community fostered by the most soulfully innovative grooves of the period (the film's soundtrack includes such Salsoul classics as Double Exposure's "My Love Is Free" and Loleatta Holloway's "Dreaming"), delivered at the crucial junction when the DJ was becoming an artist in their own right. <br><br>
The DVD's second disc includes interviews with David Mancuso, the just-departed Frankie Knuckles (who, along with the late Larry Levan, got his start at The Gallery) and Siano himself, which add more historical context. <i>Love Is The Message</i> captures a righteously hazy era of musical and social revolution with deserved and essential clarity. <br><br>
<i>Read an interview with Siano <a href="http://exclaim.ca/Interviews/WebExclusive/nicky_siano-dancing_back_through_time">here</a></i>.<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/MusicDvdExclaimca/~4/NgQSqR7TYck" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>2014-04-01T17:25:46+00:00http://exclaim.ca/music/article/love_is_message-directed_by_nicky_sianoStephen Carlickhttp://exclaim.ca/music/article/morrissey-25_live25: Live gives a pretty good idea of what to expect at a Morrissey show these days.

After some establishing shots of line-ups and crowds at his Staples Centre show the night before and some talking heads gushing a]]>Watching a Blu-Ray of any show — even his intimate March 2, 2013 show at Los Angeles' Hollywood High School — probably won't change anyone's opinion on an artist, but for the uninitiated, <i>25: Live</i> gives a pretty good idea of what to expect at a Morrissey show these days. <br><br>
After some establishing shots of line-ups and crowds at his Staples Centre show the night before and some talking heads gushing about seeing Moz in a small high school auditorium, the concert begins with "Alma Matters." He waxes whip-like with his mic cord, spinning it like a sideways lasso between occasional reaches into the crowd. <br><br>
The show is defined by passion; from Morrissey, sure — "I hope in the future... Wherever I may be... Please remember: I love you," goes his banter at one point — but especially from his fans. When he hands one the mic early in the show, after a rousing "November Spawned a Monster," the fan thanks Morrissey for "teaching us about ourselves." It has the tenor of a prayer, and there are offerings to boot: during an emphatic "Still Ill," fans hand him homemade gifts along with the now-trademark roses that stretch from fans' eager arms towards him. <br><br>
Live, Moz's beefy band adds emphasis to the guitar swells and solos, as on "That Joke Isn't Funny Anymore," during which Moz leaves to change from a shirt of thick blue flowers to one of more delicate, multi-colored arrangement, and throughout the formerly mandolin-played solo of "Please, Please, Please Let Me Get What I Want." <br><br>
The crowd sings along enthusiastically to all of Morrissey's songs, but they're especially audible on "Please," while "Every Day is Like Sunday" is composed mostly of crowd shots to show the looks of longing on the faces of his diehards. <br><br>
There are a few funny edits in the film — the "demented" shots of Moz at the beginning of "Let Me Kiss You" and a "water ripple" transition earlier on are cheesy — but for the most part, it's a straightforward look at the performance and drama that define Morrissey and the relationship he shares with his fans. It's both novel and poignant when, during "Kiss," he performs his now-trademark shirt-rip and throws it into the crowd. <br><br>
Whether you're a Morrissey fan or not, there's something touching about watching the converted frantically throw themselves onstage during "The Boy With the Thorn in His Side" to kiss his hands as security struggles to hold them back. Near the film's end, security allows a young boy onstage; Morrissey hoists him up and holds his hand before ending the song and ripping off another shirt to offer to his devoted. <br><br>
"He offered us salvation when we were truly alone," enthuses a typically snide Russell Brand in an additional feature about his opening slot on the show, as he points out that Morrissey would happily die onstage. Having watched <i>25: Live</i>, it's pretty hard to disagree. <br><br>
Incidentally: while Morrissey completists are already going to grab this one, studio versions of "Action is My Middle Name," "People Are the Same" and the unsettling "Scandinavia" provide a little extra incentive.<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/MusicDvdExclaimca/~4/-OwcU_kzB90" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>2013-11-07T16:28:00+00:00http://exclaim.ca/music/article/morrissey-25_liveMichael Edwardshttp://exclaim.ca/music/article/jimi_hendrix_hear_my_train_comin-directed_by_bob_smeaton_2American Masters, Jimi Hendrix: Hear My Train A Comin' is the kind of warm, fuzzy documentary that fits in perfectly with the widely held view of Hendrix as one of the greatest ever guitarists whose life was tragically cut short.

Director Bob Smeaton, who also worked on The Beatles Anthology covers Hendrix's life from the early days, through his time in ]]>Made as part of the PBS series <i>American Masters</i>, <i>Jimi Hendrix: Hear My Train A Comin'</i> is the kind of warm, fuzzy documentary that fits in perfectly with the widely held view of Hendrix as one of the greatest ever guitarists whose life was tragically cut short. <br><br>
Director Bob Smeaton, who also worked on <i>The Beatles Anthology</i> covers Hendrix's life from the early days, through his time in the military and his musical career through historical footage and interviews with friends, family, bandmates and other acquaintances.
Much of the interviews with key figures from Hendrix's bands are recycled from earlier pieces since they are no longer alive, but there are some new conversations, including one with Paul McCartney, who is more than happy to share his memories and take some credit for getting Hendrix started in the UK. When it comes to his private life, it is Fayne Pridgon who really humanizes Hendrix as she reminisces about his shy offstage persona. <br><br>
There are no major revelations here: Hendrix was a nice guy and a very talented guitarist whose innovative style is still having an immeasurable impact many years after his death. It doesn't exactly brush over any unsavoury elements, but it really doesn't dwell on them either.
Not surprisingly, it's the music that really makes the documentary. As soon as a guitar was put into his hands, he turned into something really special. <br><br>
Studio engineer Eddie Kramer breaks down just how groundbreaking Hendrix was in the studio by dissecting some tracks at the mixing desk, but the live performances are better still. Onstage, it is hard to think of anyone who has managed to rival his charisma and originality, and it turns out there is still some new footage in the archives that hasn't seen the light of day before. <br><br>
Ultimately, <i>Hear My Train A Comin'</i> is a two hour celebration of Jimi Hendrix and not much more. There's no denying it is a well-made documentary but it isn't terribly exciting either — longtime fans won't find much new here apart from the extras. <br><br>
The DVD also includes more complete footage from a trio of music festivals: the 1968 Miami Pop Festival, the 1970 New York Pop Festival and Love & Peace Festival, also in 1970. Rounding out the extras is a clip from British show <i>Top Of The Pops</i> in 1967 on which the band perform their signature hit "Purple Haze."<br><br>
<iframe width="460" height="380" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/Hot-BZMcu70" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/MusicDvdExclaimca/~4/LyPx6pwdXuE" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>2013-11-05T19:42:03+00:00http://exclaim.ca/music/article/jimi_hendrix_hear_my_train_comin-directed_by_bob_smeaton_2Ralph Elawanihttp://exclaim.ca/music/article/cosmic_psychos_blokes_you_can_trustThe idea of blunt linearity must have been tossed aside early on by director Matt Weston when it came to documenting the life and times of a group described by Buzz Osborne of the Melvins as "always kind of drunk," whose early songs captured the spirit of lead singer Ross Knight's life on a farm with lyrics such as: "I always lived on a farm/ Didn't think it'd be much harm/ Daddy thought I was sick in the head/ Pulled my cock in the hay shed…I love my tractor!"<br><br>
Drawing on vintage cartoons, live footage spanning over three decades and an extensive list of talking heads, including Butch Vig, Steve Albini, Donita Sparks, Eddie Vedder, Mark Arm, Steve Turner, Sub Pop's Jonathan Poneman, AmRep's Tom Hazelmyer and photographer/S&M enthusiast Whitney Ward (Knight's ex-girlfriend, now married to Joe Coleman), Weston's documentary traces Cosmic Psycho's history back to their early days as a beer guzzling high school band called Spring Plains that later settled on the moniker Cosmic Psychos after being the subject of mockeries by members of Split Enz (as Knight recalls: "That donkey from Split Enz said, 'What a stupid name.' As soon as I heard that story, I thought, 'We'll run with that.' I'm quite happy with it").<br><br>
Following the group's evolution, stories about Knight's erratic behaviour take the palm early on, as ex-collaborators reminisce about how he preferred to drive his father's new bulldozer around the farm rather than follow the rest of the group on their first European tour (though ex-guitarist Peter Jones argues that Knight thought Europe was too gay for him). Nevertheless, <i>Blokes You Can Trust</i> goes beyond the band's keg parties and depicts the group's high and lows, which range from their accidental but lucrative participation as co-writers of L7's song "Fuel My Fire" (later covered by the Prodigy on their multimillion-selling 1997 album <i>The Fat of the Land</i>) to heavier issues such as estranged relationships between band members and guitarist Robbie Watts' death in 2006. <br><br>
Weston's editing plays in favour of character building. Filmed during a period when Knight was going through divorce procedures and living in a shed in his backyard, the portrait that emerges is one of a hard working man who grows worried that his farm might be taken away from him by a court settlement. By constantly adding new dimensions to Knight's life, from his relationship with his handicapped son to his career in powerlifting, the phrase "bloke you can trust" ends up being a fitting one for a guy who, during the opening sequences, is akin to a countryside version of Fear's Lee Ving, whose hobbies on tour include games such as "who can go the longest without changing their socks." <br><br>
In the end, this portrait of the ground holding the weight of everyday life is perhaps the most resonant aspect of <i>Blokes You Can Trust</i>. Not only does one find truth in the perceptive words of the Hard-Ons' Ray Ahn, who argues that Cosmic Psychos are up there in the pantheon of Australian rock'n'rollers with AC/DC, X, Rose Tattoo, the Birthday Party, the Saints and Radio Birdman, but one gets a glimpse at an influential blue collar band for whom acrimony does not equate not making it big.<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/MusicDvdExclaimca/~4/hRBxcFJt5Ag" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>2013-11-05T18:48:23+00:00http://exclaim.ca/music/article/cosmic_psychos_blokes_you_can_trustMichael Barclayhttp://exclaim.ca/music/article/various-released_human_rights_concerts_1986-1998
]]>Remember when torture was unimaginable, not a cheap plot device on TV thrillers and an accepted part of American foreign policy? Remember when soft pressure on oppressive regimes seemed viable? Remember when volumes of actual mail might make a difference, as opposed to email spam? Remember when many of the biggest names in music actually believed in making the world a better place? Human rights: how quaint. <br><br>
With the death of Nelson Mandela, anyone who was a music fan during the '80s will remember that it was musicians who kept him in the public eye during his imprisonment. It was a time when there was still residual optimism and activism left over from the '60s; a time when it wasn't just niche artists who thought they had a responsibility to respond to the world around them. <br><br>
Mandela was an Amnesty icon, a non-violent activist protesting grave injustice and imprisoned for his beliefs. The South African cause led to earnest yet inspirational tracks like the Special A.K.A.'s "Free Nelson Mandela," Peter Gabriel's "Biko" and Little Steven's all-star "Sun City." But if Mandela was the poster child, Amnesty International itself was a harder sell: how do you engage youth and music fans in stories of obscure activists in countries where human rights isn't just a clear-cut case of black and white? <br><br>
It started in Britain with the Secret Policeman's Other Ball, featuring much of Monty Python, Rowan Atkinson, Pete Townshend, Eric Clapton and Sting. The director of Amnesty International USA, Jack Healey, wanted to do something similar in the US; with U2 eager to sign on, just as they were in their Americana phase with <i>The Unforgettable Fire</i>, Peter Gabriel, Sting, Lou Reed and Bryan Adams were quick to jump on board as well. That tour culminated with a marathon show at Giants Stadium in New Jersey in front of 80,000 people, broadcast live on MTV. Healey's plan worked: Amnesty International USA membership tripled in the subsequent months. <br><br>
But that wasn't enough: Healey wanted to take the idea around the world. So in 1988, Gabriel, Sting and Bruce Springsteen headlined a tour with Tracy Chapman and Youssou N'Dour that travelled to every continent, including shows behind the Iron Curtain, in Zimbabwe, and Argentina — just over the border from a Chile that was still run by the murderous Pinochet. It was an odd line-up: Chapman, with her solo acoustic guitar performance, embodying the power of one small individual; N'Dour, representing the cultural exchange between Africa and the West; Gabriel and Sting, the bridge-builders and outspoken activists; Springsteen, the new convert to the cause. Collaboration between the artists and their band members was common, and not just when they'd close every concert with covers of Bob Marley and Bob Dylan. A highlight is seeing Springsteen and Sting duet on "The River," with Gabriel's Indian violin whiz, L. Shankar, soloing in harmony with Springsteen's harmonica. <br><br>
This 6-DVD collection includes footage from that tour and the complete Giants Stadium show, as well as a Paris concert in 1998 featuring Radiohead, Jimmy Page & Robert Plant, Asian Dub Foundation and Alanis Morissette. A 1990 concert in Chile — held at the same stadium where Pinochet's armies shot citizens — with many of the same artists featured Sting performing "They Dance Alone" on stage with actual Chilean Mothers of the Disappeared, an experience that still moves him to tears on camera more than 20 years later. <br><br>
For all the seriousness, there is also plenty of fun and games and camaraderie found on the backstage material — especially when a completely wasted Bono and Larry Mullen Jr. jam with Peter Gabriel's rhythm section and Lou Reed's guitarist in an Atlanta hotel lounge, presaging Bono's lounge lizard makeover circa <i>Achtung Baby</i>. <br><br>
Plenty of solid documentaries and new interviews quickly dissuade any cynicism about the hoopla: for every bizarro addition to the bills (Shania Twain? New Kids on the Block?), there are plenty of inspired collaborations ("Mon amigo, El Stingo!") and genuinely informed takes on the issues. Yes, Sting is often insufferable (and horribly, horribly dressed), but there's no denying his conviction; he, along with Pete Townshend, was one of the first musicians to champion Amnesty. (Springsteen jokes that he'd never done so much research on anything in his life before heading out on the 1988 world tour, to make sure he knew his stuff: "If I'd known I'd have to do the press conferences, I might not have done the tour," he says.) <br><br>
Springsteen is the most fascinating performer here. He was still riding high from <i>Born in the U.S.A.</i> — the title track of which opens his set every night of the 1988 tour. It's both stirring and strange to see tens of thousands of Argentinians and Chileans, people whose dictatorships were supported by then-president Ronald Reagan, enthusiastically chanting "Born in the U.S.A." Of course, stadium anthemics aside, the lyrics are actually a scathing portrayal of life in Reagan's America — but seeing how so few Americans understood that, did these Spanish South Americans get it? Or, to them, was the US, despite its foreign policy, still a paragon of freedom and liberty? Springsteen, and others on the tour, say the tour was never about Western artists coming to lecture locals about human rights; it was about coming clean about your own country's sins as well. (When Springsteen played his first-ever show to an all-black audience in the Ivory Coast, Clarence Clemons turned to him and said: "Now you know how I feel every night.")<br><br>
There are plenty of WTF moments as well, mostly at the Giants Stadium show. Fela Kuti suddenly appears on stage with both Rubén Blades and the Neville Brothers — having just been released from a Nigerian prison — but never takes the mic and is barely identified. Also: Who knew the Hooters were that popular? Was Little Steven's Disciples of Soul a summation of everything that was horrible about both fashion and music in the '80s? Who scheduled a solo Joni Mitchell between Bryan Adams and U2? Hearing Joan Baez cover "Shout" by Tears for Fears, with the Nevilles backing her up, is even more bizarre than anything Yoko Ono or Miles Davis did that day. <br><br>
As both a musical and sociological time capsule, <i>Released!</i> is fascinating and essential. It was, and is, easy as both a musician and a fan to sit back and do nothing, and we already live in an entertainment-distraction complex. Music can and does mean more than just a good time, and it could be argued that these concerts did a lot more consciousness raising and overall good in the long run than Woodstock or even Live Aid. If life in 2013 feels hopeless and defeatist at the best of times, one could look at this set and ask, "Is a dream alive if it don't come true / or is it something worse?" But if you think the notion of rock'n'roll redemption is corny, there are 17 hours and six DVDs of counter-evidence right here.<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/MusicDvdExclaimca/~4/EAna_rFDS9w" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>2013-11-05T18:33:00+00:00http://exclaim.ca/music/article/various-released_human_rights_concerts_1986-1998Ian Gormelyhttp://exclaim.ca/music/article/springsteen_i_blu-ray-directed_by_baillie_walshSpringsteen and I is fan service writ large. A film in name only, it's really just one giant super cut of Brice Springsteen fans upholding the Boss's legend as "The People's Musician," narrative be damned.

Fans su]]>In manga, "fan service" refers to titles that go out of their way to give fans exactly what they want — to hell with the consequences for storytelling and character development.<br><br>
<i>Springsteen and I</i> is fan service writ large. A film in name only, it's really just one giant super cut of Brice Springsteen fans upholding the Boss's legend as "The People's Musician," narrative be damned.<br><br>
Fans submitted video testimonials preaching the gospel of Bruce and what he and his music have meant to them. Their stories touch on the sense of community, fraternity, comfort, excitement and lust that Springsteen's music stirs in them, how his music has soundtracked their lives through good times and bad, and how brief interactions with the man himself — on stage or in the street — bring them closer.<br><br>
Baillie Walsh, best known for directing the Oasis doc <i>Lord Don't Slow Me Down</i> and music videos for artists like Massive Attack and Spiritualized, assembled the footage, highlighting more than a dozen fans' stories. Interspersed are concert clips that coincide with their tales, often from the specific shows these fans attended. They range in quality from grainy cellphone footage to hi-def clips and are really the highlight of the movie, particularly the deep archival stuff from the '70s. But it's unfortunate that so many of the fans featured have stories from the E Street Band's postmillennial reformation; <i>Springsteen & I</i> could benefit from more tales from the era when the Boss's legend was still being written.<br><br>
Fandom is a curious phenomenon. A unique exchange occurs when a fan buys a concert ticket or an album. Their dreams and experiences get mixed up with those of the artist. Expectations are created that the artist has to live up to. <br><br>
Springsteen knows this all too well, and younger artists like Pearl Jam and the Dave Matthews Band have picked up the way he's handled this careful dance. This is fertile material for exploration and given the subject of this doc — the relationship between Springsteen and his fans — there's no better place to do it. Unfortunately, Walsh leaves the talking to the fans, who prefer discussing their own personal experiences to contemplating the nature of their obsession.<br><br>
Ultimately, <i>Springsteen & I</i> struggles because of the medium of film itself; audiences are used to being wowed, even in the world of documentary. So stories of dancing on stage with Springsteen or busking with him in the street, which surely were amazing as they happened, feel slight in the context of a feature length movie. Without the benefit of a proper narrative, these sorts of self-taped confessionals play better online in short doses. By trying to give Springsteen fans the film he thinks they deserve — one where they call the shots — Walsh has short-changed them by operating as a curator rather than an actual director.<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/MusicDvdExclaimca/~4/q3APqHo9pdI" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>2013-10-29T21:16:34+00:00http://exclaim.ca/music/article/springsteen_i_blu-ray-directed_by_baillie_walshNatalie Zina Walschotshttp://exclaim.ca/music/article/devin_townsend-retinal_circusOn October 27th, 2012, Devin Townsend performed a spectacular one-off show at the Roundhouse Theatre in London, UK. Featuring an extensive special effects budget and guest appearances by collaborators Steve Vai, Anneke van Giersbergen and Jed Simon, the show served as a retrospective, encompassing the last 20 years of Townsend's vast and varied career. In addition to the sheer scale and decadence of the show, it was a rare (and potentially final) opportunity to see Townsend perform songs from his most aggressive early project, Strapping Young Lad.<br><br>
Recorded both for video and audio, this unique live event has now become CD/DVD set <i>The Retinal Circus</i> (which, if you shell out for the deluxe edition, also includes a 40-page book, lithograph, and cardboard mask of Townsend's face, housed in a box that folds out into a diorama of the stage).<br><br>
Townsend's studio albums have always effectively captured the vision and nuance of his talent as a producer and recording artist, but on <i>The Retinal Circus</i> we see his unparalleled command as a showman in all its glory. While unquestionably a wondrous piece of excess and extravagance, the live performance is also incredibly funny and self-deprecating, capturing the depth and breadth of Townsend's creativity as never before. The sound and video quality is exceptional, and lets the vivid, carnivalesque imagery shine through. There's a loose narrative woven throughout the performance of a young man wandering through the "collective unconscious," which allows the audience to explore Townsend's creative visions as if wandering through a kind of deranged wonderland.<br><br>
Heavy on material from recent release <i>Epicloud</i>, it's unquestionably the songs from his comedic interstellar musical, <i>Ziltoid the Omniscient</i>, that are the highlights of the performance, renewing interest in the possibility of a stage musical adaptation of this tale of a coffee-mad alien warlord.<br><br>
For fans of Heavy Devy's oeuvre, <i>The Retinal Circus</i> is a must-have.<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/MusicDvdExclaimca/~4/FYAxHzwrzsk" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>2013-10-29T19:37:11+00:00http://exclaim.ca/music/article/devin_townsend-retinal_circusIan Gormelyhttp://exclaim.ca/music/article/made_of_stone-directed_by_shane_meadowsThe disparity between the Stone Roses' popularity in England vs. North America is staggering. In the UK, the group — considered by many to literally be the best band to come along since the Beatles and the Rolling Stones — laid the groundwork for Brit Pop's ascendance with their sound, style and swagger. Here in North America, the Manchester quartet is more of a cult act, admired by music nerds even if we don't entirely understand their God-like status in their homeland.<br><br>
Needless to say, their recent reunion caused a stir at home, while the announcement of their headlining slot at this year's Coachella was met with <a href="http://whothefuckarethestoneroses.tumblr.com/" target="_blank">a lot of head scratching</a>. Filmmaker Shane Meadows was tapped to capture the furor of the former for this documentary, which tries to tell their complicated story while also capturing the glory of their return.<br><br>
His access is at times extraordinary, as he films intimate band rehearsals of classics like "Waterfall" and "I Wanna Be Adored." He also follows the band on tour, starting with their return at a secret gig in Warrington, across Europe, and finally a hometown gig at Manchester's Heaton Park. Footage from these performances is interspersed with inessential backstage shots and some cobbled together archival footage that explains the band's troubled history. But without any serious, sit down contemporary interviews with group members — who tend to say little of note in interviews anyway — <i>Made of Stone</i> is nothing more than a snapshot of this legendary band in middle-age.<br><br>
Meadows is a talented filmmaker and no stranger to music — his movie <i>This is England</i> captured the confusing transformation of England's skinhead movement from inheritors of the Mod throne to racist thugs — yet here he falls victim to his own fandom: he believes in the band's legend, so he makes no effort to challenge or explain it to anyone on the outside. In the DVD extras he even admits he was nervous and "didn't want to go digging," choosing to only "focus on the music." Even this not-so-lofty task is challenged after a disastrous gig in Amsterdam in which drummer Reni bails before the encore. In a P.O.V. confessional shot the next morning, Meadows explains that the mood isn't good and the band have essentially booted him, or more specifically his cameras, from their entourage.<br><br>
The film ends with footage from the band's Heaton Park gig, performing a particularly epic version of "Fools Gold." There's no sense of what lies ahead for the band (more gigs, recording, another breakup?), but it's fair to say that this current incarnation of the Stone Roses proved themselves to be more than the flash in the pan their one classic album might suggest (for argument's sake, we'll ignore the much maligned <i>Second Coming</i>) at least as a live entity. Ultimately, <i>Made of Stone</i> succeeds as a performance film rather than a documentary, buoyed by the music. In that sense Meadows achieves what he set out to do. However, for a band as legendary, misunderstood and elusive as the Stone Roses, fans deserve better.<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/MusicDvdExclaimca/~4/UH7ehJpuzrA" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>2013-10-23T21:22:36+00:00http://exclaim.ca/music/article/made_of_stone-directed_by_shane_meadowsKerry Doolehttp://exclaim.ca/music/article/monochrome_set-m-80This is one of those DVDs whose very existence is a surprise. In terms of profile, Anglo post-punkers the Monochrome Set were, at best, B-listers, the kind of band John Peel would love without them ever threatening commercial success. Given that, this appearance of a live DVD taken from Marathon 80 (a 1979 Minneapolis festival also featuring the likes of Suicide, the Contortions and Tuxedo Moon) is rather unexpected. Still, the recently reformed band is about to tour the U.S. for the first time in 30 years, so the timing may be fortuitous. The filming of their performance is certainly low budget and lo-fi (their visual guy was too sick to assist at the fest), but that rather suits their quirky, angular, sparse sound. It is the earliest live footage of the group in existence and it does capture their up-tempo energy. Along with deadpan vocals, there'ss a sense of humour and a Euro-cabaret-inflected sensibility in their work (two tunes here are entitled "Ein Symphonie Des Grauens" and "Ici Les Enfants") that was refreshing amidst the oft-gloomy sound of late '70s England. The melodic charms of cuts like speedy instrumental "Lester Leaps In" and "He's Frank" retain their appeal, while they rip through 18 short and snappy tunes in just 50 minutes. As their choice of moniker suggests, the Monochrome Set are rather one-dimensional, but it's a fun one at least.<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/MusicDvdExclaimca/~4/SXRSonSFO_g" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>2013-10-10T02:03:31+00:00http://exclaim.ca/music/article/monochrome_set-m-80Ralph Elawanihttp://exclaim.ca/music/article/blowing_fuses_left_right_legendary_detroit_rock_interviews-directed_by_gil_margulisBlowing Fuses is nevertheless essentially about the Stooges and the MC5, although the Deluxe Edition features exclusive interviews with Jon Sinclair (MC5's manager]]>This title will pose a problem to anyone valuing form over content. This four-chapter DVD is essentially a compilation of three long interviews conducted in 1988 by then-19-year-old director Gil Margulis. Referred to as a "Detroit rock" documentary, <i>Blowing Fuses</i> is nevertheless essentially about the Stooges and the MC5, although the Deluxe Edition features exclusive interviews with Jon Sinclair (MC5's manager), Russ Gibb (of legendary Detroit venue the Grande Ballroom) and Scott Morgan (the Rationals, Sonic's Rendezvous Band). Margulis explains during the opening sequence that these interviews led to the making of Detroit rock documentary <i>Back on Shaking Street</i>, on which he comments: "The documentary I made, called <i>Back on Shaking Street</i>, was primitive and made on a shoestring budget out of my own pocket. But it was well received and loved by fans all over the world." Although a quick perusal of the Web reveals that Margulis has been a serial entrepreneur for over 20 years and founded a non-profit organization called Friends of Israel Firefighters, information about his "well received" documentary made on a shoestring budget is nonexistent online: no trace of it on Ebay, IMDB, YouTube, Discogs, Wikipedia, Gemm, Amazon or major MC5 fan sites. Having recently retrieved these long-lost interviews, Margulis describes how he got into the MC5 as a Westfield Highschool student in the mid-'80s, when he discovered that the White Panthers' official band had played a legendary concert at his school 20 years earlier. Despite the clumsy introduction, the Uncle Floyd-quality visuals and the litigious credentials, credit must be given: these three conversations that took place in an era when multimillionaire rappers did not wear Cro-Mags-patched designer jackets are absolutely worth watching. Chain-smoking his way through anecdotes and complaints about electronic music and "today's technology," Ron Asheton turns out to be not only entertaining but factual. Interviewed in his mother's kitchen, beer-guzzling Ron recalls the Stooges' first-ever concert on Halloween night, as well as memories of their early recording sessions with John Cale, before taking Margulis to the summer sublet house that became the band's practice room in Ann Arbour, where his brother played on an oil drum and a snare, while Iggy pounded the Farfisa organ. Rob Tyner's interview is the most noteworthy segment of this DVD, as it's apparently his last ever interview (Tyner died in 1991, after suffering a heart attack behind the wheel of his car, which was parked in front of his house). Interrogated in the comfort of his home in Berkeley, MI, Tyner reflects upon the impact of politics on MC5 and the notion of the-survival-of-the-fittest, as applied to music, as a result of the band playing teen clubs and battle of the bands at the beginning of their career. Also visibly discouraged by the state of pop music in 1988, he goes on to explain: "I don't want to speak for the others — they maybe got into rock'n'roll for chicks — but for me, it was for artistic purposes." Against Tyner's romanticism, Dennis "Machinegun" Thompson's segment comes off as the downer express sequence of this three-hour-long DVD. Thompson, through whom Margulis was originally able to trace all the other interviewees, sets the tone early on. With a wall-mounted machinegun for a background, the ex-MC5 drummer, in full <i>Cloud-Nine</i>-era George Harrison garments (wraparound mirror shades and Hawaiian shirt), gets considerably confrontational, and sometimes incongruous, with his 19-year-old interlocutor: "[…] all the philosophy, all the beautiful idealism was not killed when the revolution died, it was buried […]" "[…] between you and I and the fencepost, it's bullshit. We weren't the vanguard or the revolutionary band of anything. We embraced it as people came to embrace it." Ultimately, Thompson reveals that, to him, the MC5's political agenda was at best a strong stand against the Vietnam War: "politics were really mostly John Sinclair's stuff […] the press fabricated the rest."<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/MusicDvdExclaimca/~4/2xxPqnuAoYA" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>2013-09-26T01:27:31+00:00http://exclaim.ca/music/article/blowing_fuses_left_right_legendary_detroit_rock_interviews-directed_by_gil_margulisIan Gormelyhttp://exclaim.ca/music/article/garbage-garbage_one_mile_highx2026_liveGarbage don't get enough credit for their innovative work in the '90s. Written off as one of the better mid-level alt-rock acts of the decade, the categorization fails to illustrate how crazy their use of dance grooves, drum loops and vocal manipulations sounded in a market where genre was a hard line not to be crossed. Despite a string of modern rock radio hits (not to mention a few pop crossovers), the band faltered in the '00s, due more to changing tastes than poor product. After a six-year hiatus, Garbage re-emerged last year with a new album, <i>Not Your Kind of People</i>, and tour, whose Colorado stop this live DVD documents. Yet even in their heyday, Garbage were unable to match the dense production values of their records on stage. You could chalk that up to the technology of the time, but even today the group remain slaves to backing tracks, which hamper the energy their music should elicit. Shirley Manson, always the visual focal point of the group, remains so, but still lacks the magnetic presence contemporaries like Courtney Love and Gwen Stefani possessed (and still do). The effects she runs her voice through feel alienating and, in the case of their performance of "Milk," completely distracting. Shot for U.S. cable channel AXS TV, the show is visually uninteresting, and does nothing to elevate the pretty standard performance from Garbage, who are augmented by former Jane's Addiction member Eric Avery on bass. The whole thing looks like nothing more than a standard webcast from Coachella or Pitchfork Fest. Special features include band members discussing the genesis of some of the tracks off their new album (all four members appear far more relaxed and animated than they did during the performance portion of the DVD), and the requisite music videos. <i>One Mile High… Live</i> isn't a bad performance — the song selection is spot-on and the group have aged particularly well. But by packaging them in this ham-fisted fashion, it denies Garbage the chance to step out from the '90s alt-rock shadow.<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/MusicDvdExclaimca/~4/0ZFB9ChVWLI" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>2013-08-10T01:45:58+00:00http://exclaim.ca/music/article/garbage-garbage_one_mile_highx2026_liveRalph Elawanihttp://exclaim.ca/music/article/frank_zappa-token_of_his_extremeA Token of His E]]>It's about time someone finally decided to milk Zappa's catalogue a wee bit more and made this 1974 TV special, which had never really been broadcasted this side of the ocean, officially available on DVD after years of low quality bootlegs. Recorded live in front of a funeral-home-quiet audience just moribund enough to make every splutter of contempt rocketed out of Zappa's mouth reach its target, <i>A Token of His Extreme</i> captures the soul-patched boss of the bizarre and his acolytes at the compositional peak of their jazz-rock adventure, journeying into territories that have now long since been molested by countless guitar shop aficionados the world over. Every single number on this hour-and-a-half KCET special concert, put together with Zappa's "own money and time," showcases the quirky aptitudes of the man who so did not want to be associated with the "phony hippies" who made him a millionaire. Although Robert Christgau had reviewed Zappa's 1973 <i>Over-Nite Sensation</i> the year before saying, "Oh, I get it — the marimbas are there to mock/trivialize the serious stuff. But where's the serious stuff?" it's hard not to be taken aback by how well-rehearsed and cohesive this incarnation of the Mothers were, especially the interplay between percussionist Ruth Underwood and keyboard mogul George Duke. With bracing dabs of funk and hard rock on both ends of Zappa's cerebral solos, this epileptic feature showcases above all the unpaired showmanship of saxophonist, flutist and vocalist Napoleon Murphy Brock, which is particularly remarkable during his delirious dialogue with Zappa on "Room Service." Having finally been remastered by Bob Ludwig in 2009, <i>A Token of His Extreme</i> will appeal to anyone remotely interested in Zappa's career, especially those who wanted more out of the 1982 direct-to-video <i>The Dub Room Special</i>, which featured some of the KCET footage. Make sure you give it a full watch, at least past opening numbers "The Dog Breath Variations/Uncle Meat," before reaching out to your Mahavishnu Orchestra die-hard friends. Bruce Bickford's stunning animation, peppered throughout the performance, is worth going the extra mile and bearing with Zappa's seizure-inducing editing.<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/MusicDvdExclaimca/~4/VnYgvXlft9I" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>2013-07-11T16:40:46+00:00http://exclaim.ca/music/article/frank_zappa-token_of_his_extremeKerry Doolehttp://exclaim.ca/music/article/cure_for_pain_mark_sandman_storyCure For Pain: The Mark Sandman Story is a compelling documentary portrait of one of the most distinctive talents in American rock of the past 25 years. The footage of Morphine appearing in front of huge crowds at different European festiva]]>Boston-based trio Morphine had their '90s heyday tragically truncated when main man Mark Sandman dropped dead of a heart attack onstage at an Italian rock festival in 1999. <i>Cure For Pain: The Mark Sandman Story</i> is a compelling documentary portrait of one of the most distinctive talents in American rock of the past 25 years. The footage of Morphine appearing in front of huge crowds at different European festivals is a touch misleading, suggesting a stature larger than they achieved in North America. Sure, they were college radio faves for a while, and their moody material was in-demand for film soundtracks, but they were simply too different to reach the mass acceptance enjoyed by inferior peers like Pearl Jam. However, few bands of the time enjoyed their level of peer respect, which is confirmed here. Those eulogizing Sandman's talents in interviews include fellow bassist Mike Watt, Josh Homme, Les Claypool, John Medeski and Ben Harper. The DVD jumps around chronologically, and more factual information regarding individual Morphine albums would have been useful. The primary focus is to probe the oft-troubled and tragic life of Sandman. Always a very private figure, he withheld details of his personal pain and family history, even from close friends, but they're explored in-depth here via interviews with his parents, sister and long-time girlfriend. The loss of his two younger brothers seemingly drove Sandman to immerse himself in his music as a cure for pain. This background information helps account for the dark intensity of his songs and voice, something accentuated by the truly revolutionary line-up and sound of his band: the two-string slide bass playing of Sandman, the dual saxophones of Dana Colley and the fluid drumming of Jerome Deupree and then Billy Conway. As pointed out in the film, the resulting sound had a genuine beat culture vibe. That reference makes extra sense after we learn of Sandman's pre-music exploits, from fishing off the BC coast to living in an abandoned mining camp in Colorado and existing in a drug-filled haze in Latin America for a long period of time. He first made a musical impact in superb, but underrated Boston blues-rock band Treat Her Right in the late '80s, prior to forming Morphine. The pacing of the DVD sags a little in the middle, and then increases in intensity as Sandman's death approaches. The fact that he died in the stunningly beautiful and historic setting of Palestrina, rather than some banal Midwest arena, is suitably poetic, but, at age 46, it still came far too early. Special features on the DVD include extended interviews with the likes of Homme, Watt and Harper, and a look at the town of Palestrina. A bonus CD including ten previously unreleased Sandman recordings will also please fans.<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/MusicDvdExclaimca/~4/ui_4Vo1bPNk" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>2013-05-23T21:05:14+00:00http://exclaim.ca/music/article/cure_for_pain_mark_sandman_storyStephen Carlickhttp://exclaim.ca/music/article/last_shop_standing-directed_by_graham_jonesLast Shop Standing, a British DVD documentary based on the 2009 book of the same name, is purportedly a look "behind the counter" of independent record stores. However, what it ultimately reveals is that the spread of music, from one fan to another, is a timeless phe]]>On the surface, record stores are about selling a commodity, but unofficially, they've always been about something far more important: community. <i>Last Shop Standing</i>, a British DVD documentary based on the 2009 book of the same name, is purportedly a look "behind the counter" of independent record stores. However, what it ultimately reveals is that the spread of music, from one fan to another, is a timeless phenomenon that might not be as easily squelched as doomsayers have long predicted. The film, divided into three "acts," begins with "The Rise" of record stores in the '50s: the proliferation of .78s, the rise of .45s and Elvis Presley, and the vinyl explosion that coincided with the popularity of the Beatles and the Rolling Stones in the '60s. Then, dozens of record store owners and music personalities (among them former label salesmen, industry types and musicians such as Billy Bragg, Johnny Marr, Paul Weller and Richard Hawley) discuss the dawn of indie labels and shops during the late '70s punk and DIY boom. Among the dubious claims of many septuagenarian shop owners that they somehow predicted the ubiquity of Elvis and the Beatles is the repeated theme of the film: that these shops provided not just a product, but a place to gather, debate and discuss music, one where a culture would spread. Act 2, "The Fall" describes the bust record stores experienced in the early '00s. While the film might easily have singled-out and demonized any one cause, it wisely maintains a (relatively) unbiased tone that acknowledges the many reasons — labels purposely phasing out LPs for the "superior" sound of CDs, retailers like British supermarket Tesco (and, implicitly, stores like Walmart in North America) using CDs as loss-leaders, and Napster and the spread of mp3s and their portable players — independent record stores took such a harsh hit. The movie points out that, of the approximately 2,200 in '80s England, only 269 independent record stores were still around in 2009. However, the focus isn't the fall, but "The Rebirth" of the indie record store, and the film's third chapter reveals why shops have lived long enough to see Record Store Day (the DVD release date in North America) and the resurgence of vinyl. Nimble indies have been able to change with the marketplace, embracing music culture as much as possible: participating in Record Store Day, selling books and other paraphernalia, and putting on in-store concerts. Of course, it's still about vinyl, teaching youngsters how to use a turntable and revelling in the "ceremony" of purchasing, taking home and putting on a record, which, to some, is just consumerism. But anyone who considers themselves a vinyl junkie (i.e., anyone who would watch this film) knows the sound and feeling that only a record can provide, and understands exactly what Richard Hawley means when he admits that his "brain turns to mush" when he enters a record store, forgetting what he came to buy and leaving with an armload of other albums. <i>Last Shop Standing</i> isn't about the continued existence of music sales, but of music culture and the ritual of meeting as a community to experience an art form designed to bring people together. At 50 minutes, it's a nice little story that, despite years of foretold doom, still has no ending. The bonus features include a continuation of "Rebirth," the third act, in which the book's original author, and the documentary's host, Graham Jones, relates his positive experiences of meeting shop owners and setting up viewing parties for the film. "Shop Talk," a six-minute addition featuring extended interviews with record store owners, is a bit of fluff, but the message at the end of it — that the core of owners is stronger than it's even been znc that they're looking out for, rather than undercutting, each other — is one of hope for an industry that was forced to contend with the revolutionary Internet years before any other.<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/MusicDvdExclaimca/~4/jbgwJw8-e_Q" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>2013-04-19T01:02:32+00:00http://exclaim.ca/music/article/last_shop_standing-directed_by_graham_jonesJacob Morganhttp://exclaim.ca/music/article/scissor_sisters-live_in_victoria_park_london_2011It's difficult to listen to the Scissor Sisters without getting up and dancing. Watching them is even harder. From the moment lead singers Jake Shears and Ana Matronic jog onstage at London's Lovebox Festival clad in colourful latex outfits and ear-to-ear grins, you can tell this is going to be a show filled with positive energy. The first two songs are solid, but by the time the band launch into "Laura," the opening track from their debut album, you'll be bouncing around the living room, even if you're hanging out alone in a pair of basketball shorts and an old sweatshirt. Somehow, this feels entirely appropriate. During an interview around the midway point of the DVD, Matronic describes Scissor Sisters fans as anyone that likes to "dance around in their bedroom like a total twat." The best moments on the DVD are also the most obvious ones, as the power in songs like "Take Your Mama" and "I Don't Feel Like Dancing" is impossible to ignore. Other standouts include delightfully debauched anthem "Filthy/Gorgeous," the Pink Floyd-meets-Bee Gees cover of "Comfortably Numb" and thrilling closer "Invisible Light." For this finale, Matronic strikes impressive poses draped in yellow wings as Shears leaps across the stage in a leather dog mask. As much as these antics might be reminiscent of Madonna's voguing phase, it all seems natural and unpretentious from such an exuberant band. To be fair, there are some drawbacks to the DVD. For one, it's short. The running time of the film clocks in at under an hour, and the interviews are sparse. On the other hand, it was produced by Blink TV and is obviously designed for home viewing rather than a feature film. Also, from a promotional perspective, the release doesn't make much sense. The concert took place in 2011 and was in support of 2010's <i>Night Work</i>. Meanwhile, the DVD wasn't released until 2013, well after 2012's <i>Magic Hour</i>. Finally, an outdoor festival isn't necessarily the best venue to catch the Scissor Sisters at, and on a rainy London afternoon it's even less so. With all of that in mind, Scissor Sisters are still a great band that bring a great performance to the screen.<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/MusicDvdExclaimca/~4/hUsRiGxwdtg" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>2013-04-04T18:06:05+00:00http://exclaim.ca/music/article/scissor_sisters-live_in_victoria_park_london_2011Jacob Morganhttp://exclaim.ca/music/article/michael_jackson-moscow_case_1993My uncle immigrated to Canada from Russia in the late '70s. He's told me stories about Western products like Levi's jeans and Beatles records being sold for exorbitant amounts on the black market while the Communist regime was in power. So imagine what it must have been like when Michael Jackson, the King of Pop and ultimate American commodity, visited Russia in 1993 for a Moscow concert just after the fall of the Iron Curtain. This collision of worlds inspired Jackson to write the song "Stranger in Moscow," and the backdrop has the potential to make a great movie. Unfortunately, <i>Moscow Case</i> isn't that film. The documentary predominantly consists of interviews with Russian people who either attended the concert or were involved in putting on the show, and all of these interviews are overdubbed with the voice of a bland narrator. And while the differing first-person accounts, from contradicting descriptions of crowd size to ticket prices, may serve to illustrate the chaotic environment in Russia at the time, they aren't presented in a way that makes for a coherent viewing experience. Also, there is zero footage of the actual event, which is supposedly the focus of the film, and rather than Jackson songs providing the soundtrack, the score is populated with folksy sound bites of Russian-style accordion melodies. All of this brings us to the main issue with the film: it's not so much made for Jackson fans as for students of post-Cold War Russian history. Until the second half, Jackson is almost beside the point. We learn about the deteriorating Russian economy, the rising Russian mafia and the unpreparedness of the country for the arrival of an international star. On the positive side, there's some interesting footage of Jackson's visit, including a scene of the pop icon decked out in full glam regalia marching with a military contingent, as well as some insightful shots of him spending time with kids at an orphanage. The orphanage scenes are by far the most revealing of Jackson's character. One Russian music expert, Art Troitsky, addresses the charges of abuse in the film and says, "I'm sure in reality it was in no way pedophilia; he was just a child himself and he wanted to play with kids. The situation is indeed tragic." However, this is a rare moment in which the movie actually focuses on Jackson. For a documentary that bills itself as a "must for fans of Michael," there isn't much about the music or the performer. Don't expect any moonwalks across the Kremlin.<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/MusicDvdExclaimca/~4/Y2VzyzBQVdU" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>2013-04-04T18:04:54+00:00http://exclaim.ca/music/article/michael_jackson-moscow_case_1993Ralph Elawanihttp://exclaim.ca/music/article/einsturzende_neubauten-live_at_rockpalast_1990Die Hamletmaschine, Neubauten always found ways to evolve without embracing the absurdity of the cybergoth, industrial crowd, constantly living up to one motto: "listen with pain." This CD/DVD (which comes with liner notes]]>"Collapsing New Buildings" hardly ever dipped in relevance, regardless of the context they performed in. Whether horrifying U2's picnic audience in Rotterdam or scoring Heiner Müller's play, <i>Die Hamletmaschine</i>, Neubauten always found ways to evolve without embracing the absurdity of the cybergoth, industrial crowd, constantly living up to one motto: "listen with pain." This CD/DVD (which comes with liner notes by Ecki Stieg) captures the band at a pivotal point in their career, almost exactly a year after the fall of the Berlin Wall, as the quintet perform a 16-song set of caustic numbers mostly from <i>Fünf auf der nach oben offenen Richterskala</i>, <i>Halber Mensch</i> and <i>Haus der Lüge</i>. The man-machine get under way with a shrewd rendition of "Prolog/Furio," proving that their taste for chaos and apollonian industrial wreckage is indeed the sonic embodiment of Walter Benjamin's definition of the destructive character often cited by founder Blixa Bargeld: "the destructive character knows only one watchword: make room. And one activity: clearing away." Originally airing on a German music television show that broadcasted everything from Jimmy Cliff to Joe Bonamassa, <i>Live At Rockpalast 1990</i> is a compelling document that puts front and center a group clever enough to adapt any landscape to the ever-gestating monster of their sound. Other dystopian tracks from Neubauten's back catalogue are revisited, as Bargeld, Chung, Hacke, Unruh and Einheit stretch the limits of sound and grammar on "Yu Güng," "Ich Bin's" and Lee Hazlewood ballad "Sand" without overemphasizing the sophistication of their chemistry — an aspect that ironically did them in, as their perusal of the digital world partially caused Chung and Einheit to leave the band during the mid-'90s. While very few people at that time would have put their money on the idea that Blixa Bargeld would someday be cooking squid risotto on TV with Alfred Biolek, this concert demonstrates a mature band shifting from harsh metal grinding and leather pants to more digestible and concrete songwriting (and sartorial tastes). Far from feeling obliged to wander down the clogged highways of professional populism by feeding off applause and torrential sing-alongs, the band have little to no interaction with the crowd. Yet, in parallel fashion to the liberating frequencies of acts like the Nihilist Spasm Band and Le Quatuor de Jazz Libre du Québec, the idea is that hitting an oil tank with the right crowbar is one million times more efficient on a level of personal liberation than having Bono cover the Skids for topical purposes.<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/MusicDvdExclaimca/~4/FqDN5JbxTSQ" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>2013-02-21T18:05:50+00:00http://exclaim.ca/music/article/einsturzende_neubauten-live_at_rockpalast_1990Ralph Elawanihttp://exclaim.ca/music/article/stranglers-on_stage_on_screenOn Stage on Screen showcases the Stranglers' performance at the Shepherd's Bush Empire on December 2, 2005, as well as an acoustic set and J.J. Burnel's first ever role in a feature film. These three events must have seemed worth capturing in the moment, as the band had recently entered the top 40 for the first time in nearly ten years with the title track of 2004 album Norfolk Coast. The Stranglers pre]]><i>On Stage on Screen</i> showcases the Stranglers' performance at the Shepherd's Bush Empire on December 2, 2005, as well as an acoustic set and J.J. Burnel's first ever role in a feature film. These three events must have seemed worth capturing in the moment, as the band had recently entered the top 40 for the first time in nearly ten years with the title track of 2004 album <i>Norfolk Coast</i>. The Stranglers predated new wave, starting out in 1974 as a pub rock act with a unique twist and a handful of remarkable singles. They later met with considerable success in the early '80s, with a string of brilliant albums, and then for a long period of time were neither edgy nor particularly engaging. Along the way, after Hugh Cornwell's departure, came a singer named Paul Roberts, whose stage moves were a cross between David Bowie and Ted Nugent, a slightly unbearable feature that radiates throughout this sold-out performance. Though Roberts' moves and aura get in the way pretty quickly, the sound quality is beyond reproach, displaying all the subtleties of (ex-Toy Dolls) guitarist Baz Warne's playing. As it is predictable, the best thing the Stranglers can do some 30 years after their establishment is live up to the idea people have of them. The editing stands out as very "cubist," to say the least (or beyond gruesome, if you despise euphemisms), as the camera angles keep changing every time the band hit a note, which makes for a mind-boggling swirl of discontinuity, the theatricality of which could have made this show part of a Budweiser event, perked up by Roberts' awkward, shirtless jump kicks, dance moves, ripped abs and tribal tattoos. As far as the acoustic set goes, the call of "Kumbaya" could have been put on the back-burner for a few more years, even though these tamed-down versions constitute the conga-banging Roberts' greatest vocal achievements. Just when you thought you were through, after hearing acoustic versions of songs that should have been performed during the electric set, you finally get to a well-intentioned but mildly boring short. In a nutshell, <i>Norfolk Coast</i> tells the tale of a man named Warner (Burnel), who sees his life crumbling when his wife commits suicide, throwing herself off a cliff. The main issue is Warner's inability to deal with his past as a child abused by a satanic cult led by members of his family. As this gigantic rip-off of any Sunday evening crime reconstruction culminates with a predictable ending, Warner goes back to his father's cottage and offs the old man.<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/MusicDvdExclaimca/~4/VP1oha4Afi8" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>2013-02-21T17:52:01+00:00http://exclaim.ca/music/article/stranglers-on_stage_on_screenKerry Doolehttp://exclaim.ca/music/article/damned-damneds_tiki_nightmare_live_live_liveThe Damned were at the vanguard of original British punk, up there with the Sex Pistols and the Clash. They were the first of that class of '76 to release an album and the first to tour America. During their first five years, they delivered a healthy number of punk rock classics, and it's no surprise they deliver an entertaining live DVD, taken from a hometown London performance in 2002. This lineup featured original singer Dave Vanian and guitarist Captain Sensible, though sadly not Rat Scabies, one of punk's very best drummers. Goth pinup Patricia Morrison (Sisters of Mercy) is on bass, flashing eye-catching cleavage; she is also appealingly eloquent in the extensive interview footage, which is a valuable extra. The Damned were always one of the funnest punk bands live and that's captured here. Captain (not very) Sensible is in fine form and he gets to do his solo hit, "Happy Talk." Vanian also looks and sounds the part, though the group's sound moves from three-chord punk territory to more mainstream rock'n'roll and psychedelia on some of their later material. <i>Tiki Nightmare</i> comes alive in the second half as they rip through such classics as "Neat Neat Neat," "New Rose," "Smash It Up," "Eloise" and "It's A Love Song" "Original fans will dig this, and punk rock lovers unfamiliar with the Damned should do themselves a favour and check this out.<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/MusicDvdExclaimca/~4/NqNXMOkzoRE" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>2013-02-14T13:08:06+00:00http://exclaim.ca/music/article/damned-damneds_tiki_nightmare_live_live_liveRalph Elawanihttp://exclaim.ca/music/article/pato_banton_live_seenLive & Seen lives up to only one of the aforementioned claims: there is indeed a p]]>Questionably introduced by Reggae TV's "Mr. Rich," this 177-minute-long DVD is hard to knock because of the seemingly honest effort behind that good excuse for a two-hour walk to the corner store. Packaged as "an awesome DVD featuring a live performance in San Diego, California, as well as an in-depth interview and documentary," <i>Live & Seen</i> lives up to only one of the aforementioned claims: there is indeed a performance in San Diego, CA. For whatever reason, Mr. Rich kicks off the ball by "toasting" in Jamaican patois (remember, Rich looks as Rastafarian as Bob Rae) and subsequently embarks upon a Scientology-meets-Troy-McClure monologue to cap off his introduction to Banton's modest success story: "I guarantee that if you watch this show or go see him live, he will be your friend too." Born in Birmingham, England, to Jamaican parents, Banton spent his youth soaking up bass culture in the company of his stepdad, a reggae DJ who would turn their modest home into a dance club during the weekends. Interviewed in a Southern California recording studio, the now 51-year-old musician in a do-rag recalls tales of police brutality, black identity and collaborations with UB40, Mad Professor, the English Beat, Sting (for the <i>Ace Ventura</i> soundtrack) and Peter Gabriel, in god-awful cargo pants. Banton's story comes across as a saga of honesty, perseverance and religious je ne sais quoi, in the midst of this cringe-inducing public-access publicity stunt for the other Reggae TV episodes. <i>Live & Seen</i> is exactly what you would expect from a mid-'80s reggae fan with a handheld camera and an acquired taste for the men's wooden beads necklace section at his local surf shop. Accountable for the worst period in reggae music's history, the decade spanning from 1985 to 1995 was as tasteful as the annual Gathering of the Juggalos. Hence, some of the other highlights on this train wreck include Pato's video for "Bubbling Hot," anachronistic posters (the English Beat on the same bill as RX Bandits, as Pato talks about his meeting with the Beat in 1980), a handful of Funky-C and Funky-Do sons of reggae pioneers banking on their last name, and many more moments during which you'll wish Pato was really your friend.<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/MusicDvdExclaimca/~4/QNjwwlTooJ0" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>2013-01-04T01:39:49+00:00http://exclaim.ca/music/article/pato_banton_live_seenRalph Elawanihttp://exclaim.ca/music/article/ike_tina_on_road_1971-1972Ike & Tina Turner's charisma, showmanship and commanding performances resulted from years of canvassing the "Chitlin' Circuit," where it was considered safe for African American entertainers to perform during the age of racial segregation in the States. Filmed with a Sony Portapack camera by the then 26-year-old Bob Gruen, personally hired by Ike Turner (whom he had accidentally met at the Newport Jazz Festival in 1970), <i>On the Road 1971-1972</i> ties in with Gruen's later work amidst the burgeoning NYC punk scene, where live performances were truly where the rubber met the road. While the sound quality is surprisingly decent, the debatable image quality showcases Gruen's struggle with new technologies as he chronicles Ike and Tina's life on the road, in the recording studio and in the luxury of their home. It isn't clear how much of the original material was kept, but in the words of the acclaimed photographer, this footage shows why Ike and Tina were together for 20 years before the domestic abuse and madness that inspired <i>What's Love Got to Do With It?</i> finally nailed the coffin shut. However violent and irrational their miasmatic relationship might have been (the omnipresent bickering that occurs during the opening sequences foreshadows what will one day transpire), it's difficult to avoid being taken aback by the live performances captured by Gruen. Nevertheless, <i>On the Road 1971-1972</i> is unlikely to turn a neophyte into a diehard Turner fan. Similar to Gruen's New York Dolls' cinema vérité effort, <i>All Dolled Up, On the Road</i> is a substantial document that needs to be relished in the company of dilettante friends.<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/MusicDvdExclaimca/~4/3pNEs-4Ne50" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>2013-01-04T01:37:23+00:00http://exclaim.ca/music/article/ike_tina_on_road_1971-1972Peter Marrackhttp://exclaim.ca/music/article/zen_of_bennett-directed_by_unjoo_moonThe Zen of Bennett supposes, by way of its fly-on-the-wall cinematography, that every utterance from this 86-year-old should be etched in stone and tiled alongside Hollywood's Walk of Fame — to contrast truth with star power. Some of the beauts are: "It's either good music or it's not; it's not opinion"; "we learn everything from nature, nature is the master"; and "too many chiefs, not enough Indians." The lat]]><i>The Zen of Bennett</i> supposes, by way of its fly-on-the-wall cinematography, that every utterance from this 86-year-old should be etched in stone and tiled alongside Hollywood's Walk of Fame — to contrast truth with star power. Some of the beauts are: "It's either good music or it's not; it's not opinion"; "we learn everything from nature, nature is the master"; and "too many chiefs, not enough Indians." The latter describes Bennett's attitude whenever his traveling troupe of sons, daughters and music technicians try and tell him what to do. "I only know how to do two things," says Bennett: "sing and paint." But still his producers insist on setting his tempos. His manager convinces him his image is by no means "demographic" and even his wife clutches his shoulder and tells him he's not "going anywhere." The whole show looks exhausting. The only solace Bennett gets is when he's philosophizing and cracking jokes with other people his age — and when he's in front of the mic, which is what this documentary is all about: the music. The hour-and-a-half doc, which is oddly listed on the back of the DVD case as running two-and-a-half hours, tracks Bennett's travels as he records his <i>Duets II</i> album. Again, Bennett wants to transcend "demographics." Conceived by Bennett's son, Danny, and directed by Unjoo Moon, the film combines crisp digital video and black & white collage interludes. It is essentially a behind-the-scenes look at Bennett's interactions with the pop stars of yesteryear and today. Bennett plots to "warn" Amy Winehouse about her drug use but never does, according to the camera. They sing a tumultuous version of "Body and Soul" that comes through the stereo like a joint reading of <i>Charles Dickens</i> by Allen Ginsberg and Ernest Hemingway. The crew travels to Italy so Bennett can, frustratingly, wait for Andrea Bocelli to learn "Stranger in Paradise" in brail. They eventually pull it off, but not before Bennett complains of exhaustion and threatens to abandon the recording. Another glitch occurs during a post-recording press conference with John Mayer, when the mouthy superstar tells the reporter his dad loves Bennett's songs. Bennett interprets this as a breach of his "demographics," or lack thereof, which he so painstakingly tries to protect throughout this whole ordeal. At the end of the day, Bennet is an incredible singer, who, as Tom Robbins would say, doubts the present because he thinks in the past. But his wisdom still rings true with a simplicity that resonates in his most pleasant of songs.<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/MusicDvdExclaimca/~4/ipRvc1expS0" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>2012-12-13T21:23:33+00:00http://exclaim.ca/music/article/zen_of_bennett-directed_by_unjoo_moonIan Gormelyhttp://exclaim.ca/music/article/color_me_obsessed_film_about_replacements-directed_by_gorman_bechardColor Me Obsessed doesn't skirt the rights issues with live versions and archival int]]>How do you profile a band without using any of there music? It's not a new dilemma — plenty of el-cheapo, straight-to-DVD docs have done just that, some with interesting results. But director Gorman Bechard claims he never intended to included tunes from Minneapolis's much loved screw-ups, the Replacements. Unlike other docs, <i>Color Me Obsessed</i> doesn't skirt the rights issues with live versions and archival interviews. In fact, not a single member of the Mats appears in Bechard's film. Instead, he bills his movie as "a potentially true story" and relies on the friends, colleagues and fans that were there to tell the band's tale. These aren't just fly-by-night talking heads — the director rounds up staff from the band's first label, Twin/Tone, including owner Peter Jesperson, producers (Tommy Ramone, who worked on <i>Tim</i>, makes an appearance), critic Robert Cristgau and even Grant Hart and Greg Norton from rivals Hüsker Dü (they're interviewed separately). The film follows the band's story from future singer/guitarist Paul Westerberg hiding in the bushes, listening to brothers Bob and Tommy Stinson jamming in their parents house, to their unruly early days through their transformation into a critically adored group, with <i>Let It Be</i>, to slicked-up major label stars. For the most part, his approach works. The Replacements were a band whose legend has always far outstripped their recorded output and, depending on how drunk they were, even some live gigs. And they have no shortage of admirers ready to sing the group's praises, defend their favourite album or share a hilarious run-in with one of the quartet's often-inebriated members. The film offers little beyond postscript regarding the group's post-Replacement work, a particularly glaring omission given the tragedy of Bob Stinson's death, which receives little more than passing mention. For the most part, Bechard even eschews photos of the group, ensuring that the old adage "show don't tell" is thrown right out the window. This makes for rather dull viewing — <i>Color Me Obsessed</i> would have actually been a terrific podcast or radio doc, but that would have only reached a quarter of the potential audience. Extras feature deleted scenes, including some fun animated sequences that were meant to transition from album to album. In his laughably serious director commentary, Bechard claims that by not involving the band or their music in the film he's "breaking the rules," just like the band, and if you don't like his film, you're not a real Replacements fan. Yes, the film works and, yes, Bechard is challenging the rock-doc norm by refusing to involve the band or their music, even though he could have. But that doesn't change the fact that there's a voice missing, leaving viewers a tad unsatisfied. <i>Color Me Obsessed</i> is a film for Replacement fans, but without the context of the group's music, it's unlikely to draw in the uninitiated.<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/MusicDvdExclaimca/~4/Fup3_AVSDa8" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>2012-12-13T02:52:09+00:00http://exclaim.ca/music/article/color_me_obsessed_film_about_replacements-directed_by_gorman_bechardIan Gormelyhttp://exclaim.ca/music/article/david_bowie_calm_before_storm_under_review_1969_to_1971David Bowie's the type of artist whose career has been examined and dissected ever since the chameleon-like star first set his platform boots upon the stage. So, a documentary purporting to explore his "early" years has its work cut out if the filmmakers hope to break new ground. Unfortunately, this unauthorized DVD does little beyond glossing over what we already know. David Bowie was an aspiring folkie in '60s London, essentially doing anything to make it big, when he stumbled into a prescient hit with "Space Oddity" shortly after Neil Armstrong's moon landing. The doc does a decent enough job covering this territory, digging up photos, footage and characters from the least Bowie-esque period of the singer's career. Oddly, "The Laughing Gnome," a would-be novelty hit that failed to chart, is completely ignored despite its infamy in Bowie lore. Rather than lingering in this period (even as Bowie's least explored career phase, it still provided inspiration for parts of Todd Haynes fictional glam flick, <i>Velvet Goldmine</i>), we move into better-known parts of Bowie's history, namely the trio of pre-Ziggy records: <i>Space Oddity</i>, <i>The Man Who Sold the World</i> and <i>Hunky Dory</i>. The three albums are somewhat lumped together, as requisite talking heads espouse the virtues of these records over Ziggy (a narrative long since established in both music journalist and Bowie fan circles). For a film purporting to stick to the quiet early years, <i>The Calm Before the Storm</i> dives headfirst into <i>The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars</i>, now four records deep into the Bowie we all know and love, before ending after a scant 65 minutes. There have been many cheap cash-grab music docs in recent years, some of which are actually quite good. This isn't one of them. Too inside for nubes yet short on substance for the die-hards, <i>The Calm Before the Storm</i> is best left to the discount bin.<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/MusicDvdExclaimca/~4/DT5X9V3qsMA" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>2012-12-13T02:49:07+00:00http://exclaim.ca/music/article/david_bowie_calm_before_storm_under_review_1969_to_1971Ian Gormelyhttp://exclaim.ca/music/article/peter_gabriel_secret_world_liveSecret World tour in 1993, the English singer was already in the third stage of his career. Having started out as the art-minded lead singer in Genesis's most p]]>When you look at lists of the best, most influential and popular music videos of all time, sticking out amongst clips by legends like Madonna and Michael Jackson is Peter Gabrielle's "Sledgehammer." By the time Peter Gabriel embarked upon his ambitious <i>Secret World</i> tour in 1993, the English singer was already in the third stage of his career. Having started out as the art-minded lead singer in Genesis's most prog incarnation, Gabriel bailed in 1975 and embarked upon a solo career, releasing a quartet of self-titled albums, each with increasing pop concessions. By the early '90s, he was an established pop singer known for innovative music clips and soundtracking John Cusack's boom-box romances. This tour, and the album it supported, <i>Us</i>, was the height of Gabriel's ambition and popularity, which manifested themselves in the tightly choreographed stage show that would have been right up there with U2's Zoo TV tour (okay, there's fewer TV screens and he didn't call any world leaders, but you get the picture). Still, that doesn't distract from the fact that this was a pretty fantastic performance. Why it took so long to make the transition from VHS and laser disc to DVD is anybody's guess. Leaning heavily on <i>Us</i> and <i>So</i> — still his most pop-focused and, consequently, popular albums — Gabriel is clad in his best Han Solo get-up (white puffy shirt and black vest). Never the most magnetic or charismatic of stars, his crack team of musicians, including a pre-<i>Dawson's Creek</i> theme Paula Cole, take turns sharing the spotlight with the singer, but it's clear throughout that this is his show. What Gabriel lacks in Bowie- or Jagger-esque image or swagger he makes up for with stage props, including a giant tree and POV camera. You get the sense that these performances have been tweaked in postproduction — the show lacks the visceral thrill of a more off-the-cuff-sounding live concert — but the precision works in Gabriel's favour. Bonus features include an added performance of "Red Rain" from the original tour and a 2011 live clip of "The Rhythm of the Heat," as well as a making-of feature.<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/MusicDvdExclaimca/~4/KauoRXOU3Gc" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>2012-12-13T02:46:14+00:00http://exclaim.ca/music/article/peter_gabriel_secret_world_liveJason Schneiderhttp://exclaim.ca/music/article/rolling_stones_charlie_is_my_darling-directed_by_peter_whiteheadThe expansive release of this rarely seen documentary of the Stones at the height of their initial fame is appropriately timed to coincide with the hoopla surrounding the band's 50th anniversary celebrations. And what a difference 50 years certainly makes. Shot mainly as cinéma vérité during a whirlwind two-day trip to Ireland in September 1965, the 60-minute black-&-white film is an intimate portrait of the Stones on the cusp of hitting their stride. "(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction" was the hit of the summer and concerts were becoming increasingly chaotic. What's most refreshing from today's perspective is director Whitehead's attempts to give equal time to all the members, and the individual sit-down interviews reveal a surprising amount of introspection and sense of responsibility in carrying out their roles as "pop stars." Indeed, group unity was of paramount importance when facing deranged crowds every night, and it's shocking how quickly one of the concerts erupts into violence. The footage stands in stark contrast to the other great music doc of 1965, D.A. Pennebaker's <i>Don't Look Back</i>, during which crowds display nothing but complete reverence toward star Bob Dylan. Signs of Dylan's influence creeping into the Stones' camp are in fact evident in the tantalizing glimpses of Mick Jagger and Keith Richards writing together. These scenes also reinforce the notion that by this point, Stones founder Brian Jones was already becoming isolated and would soon descend into a drug hell. For this reason, Jones's interview segments — better utilized in the accompanying director's cut — are the most illuminating. Never again was he captured so lucidly, discussing his life and goals, and the gulf between he and Richards is brutally apparent. Along with DVD and Blu-Ray versions of the film, the nicely assembled box also includes CDs of the film soundtrack, a further CD and ten-inch record of 1965 live recordings, a hardcover book and replica tour poster. Although this version of the Stones will seem foreign to many young fans, <i>Charlie Is My Darling</i> stands as the definitive audio/visual document of the Brian Jones era, showing how the Stones became the blueprint for nearly every rock'n'roll band to follow.<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/MusicDvdExclaimca/~4/x1IDKQvcdi4" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>2012-12-07T21:10:14+00:00http://exclaim.ca/music/article/rolling_stones_charlie_is_my_darling-directed_by_peter_whiteheadIan Gormelyhttp://exclaim.ca/music/article/freddie_mercury_great_pretender-directed_by_rhys_thomasWith the Frankenstein corpse of Queen marching across the globe, in both their Broadway musical and truncated band reunion versions, the time seems ripe to take a closer look at the British quartet's legendary singer: Freddie Mercury. This latest instalment in Eagle Vision's cheap but fun run of archival docs focuses on Mercury's work outside the group, particularly his two solo albums from the '80s. Mercury had a very un-rock'n'roll upbringing, being born to Parsi parents in Zanzibar (now part of Tanzania), something he downplayed throughout most of his career. The film jumps around in time, moving from his first solo album, 1985's <i>Mr. Bad Guy</i>, to the late '70s, where he first began publically toying with his sexual identity. By the early '80s, Mercury had a flat in NYC and submerged himself in the city's gay club scene, which was at its hedonistic peak at the time. The influence of this period is evident on Queen's subsequent album, <i>Hot Space</i>, which embraced the dance music Mercury loved. Despite housing Mercury's epic duet with David Bowie, "Under Pressure" (which is barely mentioned), the album was a disappointment, losing America for the band and further straining group relations. <i>The Great Pretender </i>does address the duet Mercury performed with Michael Jackson, even playing a snippet of the track, but spends much of its run time focusing on Mercury's second record sans Queen, a duet album with Spanish opera star Montserrat Caballé, <i>Barcelona</i>. The doc's final minutes are dedicated to Mercury's deteriorating health and eventual death stemming from AIDS. While Filmmaker Rhys Thomas scored contemporary interviews with both Brian May and Roger Taylor, most of the doc is pieced together from archival footage (extended interviews from the mid-'80s serve as the DVD's sole bonus material), making for a somewhat jumbled narrative. Still, Thomas has honed in on an oft-overlooked aspect of one of pop and rock's most dynamic frontmen, making <i>The Great Pretender</i> the perfect way to kill an afternoon for any Queen fan.<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/MusicDvdExclaimca/~4/M3DZSAONeoI" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>2012-12-07T21:09:26+00:00http://exclaim.ca/music/article/freddie_mercury_great_pretender-directed_by_rhys_thomasEvan McDowellhttp://exclaim.ca/music/article/magical_mystery_tour_blu-rayMagical Mystery Tour: a group of British tourists board a bus, drive off into the countryside and experience a series of surreal events. These events include, but are not limited to, Ringo Starr's aunt dreaming of John Lennon shovelling spaghetti onto a table, McCartney as a military general mumbling nonsensical syllables and the entire group as wizards in outer spa]]>In 1967, Paul McCartney devised the idea for <i>Magical Mystery Tour</i>: a group of British tourists board a bus, drive off into the countryside and experience a series of surreal events. These events include, but are not limited to, Ringo Starr's aunt dreaming of John Lennon shovelling spaghetti onto a table, McCartney as a military general mumbling nonsensical syllables and the entire group as wizards in outer space, directing the tour bus. In the commentary included on this newly restored edition, McCartney remarks that the film was completely unscripted and shot over a two-week span with a 16mm camera crew. The crew hoped that traveling with such a large group of actors and improvising scenes as they came along would make the movie unique. Some 45 years later, the sketches in the film haven't aged very well. Many of the dialogue-heavy sequences are forced and will likely only appeal to fans that need every second of footage that exists of the group together. For the decidedly casual Beatles fan, the film still serves a somewhat meaningful purpose. In its attempts at being "out-there," <i>Magical Mystery Tour</i> showcases the group moving away from the corporate world of Capitol Records and towards establishing their own label, Apple (which they would start shortly after the film was released). Additionally, some of the camera techniques used during the musical sequences remain impressive in their incorporation of lens and colour trickery, particularly Blue Jay Way's kaleidoscopic, dream-like sequence of George Harrison playing a keyboard drawn with sidewalk chalk. Due to the poor reception the film received upon its initial release, there are no surviving negatives. Because of this, the footage for this re-release has been culled from a variety of prints. This becomes apparent while watching the film, as some sequences are grainier than others, but overall this won't impact the average person's viewing experience. The disc includes over an hour of interviews with McCartney, Ringo Starr and a number of actors and extras that took part in the film. Completists and those looking for a snapshot of this transitional period will want to pick this disc up for these features alone. For everyone else, this release offers a whimsical (albeit dated) look at this period in the Beatles career.<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/MusicDvdExclaimca/~4/_kea3x2y7CE" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>2012-12-07T21:08:36+00:00http://exclaim.ca/music/article/magical_mystery_tour_blu-rayIan Gormelyhttp://exclaim.ca/music/article/mudhoney_live_berlin_1988In the liner notes for this recently unearthed grainy concert footage, music scribe Stevie Chick goes to great lengths to emphasize the seismic importance of Mudhoney's all-expenses paid trip to Berlin for an industry showcase in 1988. "There are those nights within the annals of rock," he writes, "that just went ahead and changed everything, and it's a fact that you're holding a document of one such night in your hands." Um, not so much, Stevie. <i>Mudhoney: Live in Berlin 1988</i> is a pretty cool look at the influential Seattle group playing to a small, relatively unenthused crowd. Filmed on VHS by !K7 Video Productions, a precursor to Berlin electronic music label !K7 Records, the film captures Mudhoney at their most unaffected (as if Mudhoney were ever affected). Having just released their "Touch Me I'm Sick" single, the short 40-minute set showcases tracks from what would become the <i>Superfuzz Big Muff</i> EP (audio from the show appeared on the EP's deluxe edition) and their self-titled debut. Singer/guitarist Mark Arm is sporting one of Sub Pop's famed "Loser" T-shirts, baiting the crowd with smarmy between-song banter like, "Ich bin ein Berliner!" and "Pull down your pants if you like us!" It's easy to see why so many bands wanted to poach drummer Dan Peters (Nirvana tried), as he's the clear anchor to the sonic chaos created by Arm and guitarist Steve Turner. Arm is particularly animated, flailing about the stage during "Here Comes Sickness" and actually falling over during "If I Think" (he doesn't miss a note). Three quarters of the way through their set, bass player Matt Lukin blows out his amp, giving Arm a chance to pretend to hit on groupies in the crowd, even if the delay does derail the set's energy. Chick wasn't completely off-the mark though. This show was the first time Europe experienced any live form of the music that would be labelled grunge, a genre the continent took to far quicker and for longer than its North American home. And, as he points out, this is the show where Mudhoney met most of the European bookers who would continue to bring the quartet back throughout the '90s. Still, the hyperbole is silly given the band's preferred "just along for the ride" vibe. Still, this release feels more like a great piece of archival footage of a band just hitting their stride — from the get-go, it's clear there was something special about this band — and that's exactly how Mudhoney like it.<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/MusicDvdExclaimca/~4/DqahtJluwwI" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>2012-11-30T21:51:33+00:00http://exclaim.ca/music/article/mudhoney_live_berlin_1988Ian Gormelyhttp://exclaim.ca/music/article/queen-greatest_video_hitsGreatest Video Hits splits Queen's enormous trove of promo clips onto two DVDs. Roughly sequenced by date, the first dis]]>Few '70s hard rock bands weathered the onslaught of MTV as well as Queen. Of course, this coincided with an increasingly pop-oriented sound that, while turning off hordes of long-running, longhaired fans, certainly produced some memorable singles, even if their albums suffered in comparison. <i>Greatest Video Hits</i> splits Queen's enormous trove of promo clips onto two DVDs. Roughly sequenced by date, the first disc, purists would argue, contains their best songs, while the second, as anyone with two eyes can see, houses the superior videos. That being said, the collection kicks off with "Bohemian Rhapsody," which remains the most iconic video (and song) in their massive catalogue. The floating heads in the "opera" section of the clip are especially impressive given the nascent level of effects in music videos in 1975. But most of the video is soundstage performance footage, ditto for "Another One Bites the Dust," "Tie Your Mother Down" and "Fat Bottom Girls," all of which rely upon Freddie Mercury's over-the-top frontman antics to carry the load. As things progress, increasingly interesting visual presentations slowly make their way into Queen's videos, but it's clear that there's limited vision beyond superimposing the group in front of flames. Queen's '80s video output is rarely embarrassing, which is a great deal more than can be said about other acts from the era, but the quartet didn't hit their visual stride until 1984's <i>The Works.</i> Although it flopped in the U.S., it was a massive hit in Europe, thanks to singles like "Radio Ga Ga" and its Fritz Lang-inspired video, and "I Want to Break Free," where the band infamously dressed in drag to spoof <i>Coronation Street</i>. What's interesting watching all these clips back to back is how Mercury slowly begins to flirt with gay iconography, particularly the black leather of "Crazy Little Thing Called Love" or adopting short black hair and a moustache for much of the decade. Meanwhile, the rest of the group, and bassist John Deacon, in particular, seem content to fade into the background, whether it's soundstage or sets inspired by the original <i>Highlander</i> movie, for which Queen provided the soundtrack. More curious is the absence of clips from the band's final album during Mercury's lifetime, <i>Innuendo</i>, perhaps due to the singer's gaunt look in some videos and the recycled footage that clutters others. As fun as it is to watch a group slowly adapt to a new medium, this collection offers no other features, rendering it pretty superfluous to anyone with a web connection.<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/MusicDvdExclaimca/~4/DxsjuG7auA8" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>2012-11-12T16:26:52+00:00http://exclaim.ca/music/article/queen-greatest_video_hitsAllan Tonghttp://exclaim.ca/music/article/produced_by_george_martinProduced By George Martin offers a few surprises, starting with Martin's humble Cockney beginnings as the Germans bombed London in WWII. An ambitious lad, Martin affected a posh BBC accent that he's carried t]]>George Martin will forever by known as the man who produced the Beatles, but this DVD succeeds in enlarging Sir George's story, giving a sense of his wider accomplishments. Broadcast last year on the BBC, <i>Produced By George Martin</i> offers a few surprises, starting with Martin's humble Cockney beginnings as the Germans bombed London in WWII. An ambitious lad, Martin affected a posh BBC accent that he's carried throughout his life, just like the slender ties that hang around his neck. Impeccably polite yet professionally precise, Martin studied classical music and landed a job at Parlophone, the lowliest label at giant British label EMI. Out of desperation, Martin carved a niche by recording comedy records for the famed Goons, which included Peter Sellers. Michael Palin appears on camera chatting with Martin about those recordings, which he admits had a seminal influence on Monty Python. However, Martin makes a keen observation: recording comedy meant building soundscapes to replace the visuals seen in a live sketch. Comedy prepared him to record the Beatles' psychedelic masterpieces: <i>Revolver </i>and <i>Sgt. Pepper. </i>Martin gives another insight into his craft by paraphrasing the painter Degas, "The recording is not what one hears, but what one must make others hear." Martin (along with Phil Spector) is credited in moving away from "photographic" musical recording by capturing a live sound in studio and manipulating sound to create soundscapes like a painter. No, he didn't make the Beatles great, he says, but he merely helped shape their songs. Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr, as well as Jeff Beck and Cilla Black, sing Martin's praises, while an extra 50 minutes include interviews from producers such as Rick Rubin (Jay-Z) and T-Bone Burnett (Los Lobos), who attest to his influence. His son, Gilles, and his wife interview Martin throughout, so this film isn't exactly hard-hitting, but it does offer a portrait of an innovative producer and gentleman.<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/MusicDvdExclaimca/~4/EmNQa70EhHY" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>2012-10-04T19:15:45+00:00http://exclaim.ca/music/article/produced_by_george_martinIan Gormelyhttp://exclaim.ca/music/article/pink_floyd_story_of_wish_you_were_here-directed_by_john_edgintonThe Story of Wish You Were Here is that the iconic Pink Floyd album's tale is actually quite well known, even amongst casual fans. This latest regurgitation of the English quartet's past follows the Classic Albums format, interlaying interviews with band members and people close to the group with mixing board listening sessions of alternate takes and mixes from what w]]>The problem with a documentary like <i>The Story of Wish You</i> <i>Were Here</i> is that the iconic Pink Floyd album's tale is actually quite well known, even amongst casual fans. This latest regurgitation of the English quartet's past follows the Classic Albums format, interlaying interviews with band members and people close to the group with mixing board listening sessions of alternate takes and mixes from what would prove to be the band's most personal recording. Faced with the daunting task of following up <i>Dark Side of the Moon</i> and its subsequent tour, the English quartet found themselves creatively aimless. Feeling somewhat disillusioned by their new-found fame, singer/bass player Roger Waters cast his gaze back to the group's original singer, Syd Barrett, and wrote "Shine On You Crazy Diamond" after hearing the song's four-note intro played by guitarist David Gilmour. The song became the basis for an album that would espouse disillusionment with the record industry and success ("Have a Cigar," "Welcome to the Machine"), absence and alienation ("Wish You Were Here"). Given that this is a band-sanctioned release, there's little in the way of revelations or juicy gossip ― this is a stick-to-the-legend affair, although it's clear that Barrett's famed appearance in the studio during the recording sessions is still upsetting to members. The main feature is bookended by the band's appearance at Live 8 in 2008. And while the reunion is framed as a reconciliation of sorts, it's clear Gilmour and Waters still have their differences. None of the members are interviewed together and the bonus features include separate solo performances of "Wish You Were Here" by Waters and Gilmour ― clearly neither was willing to share the spotlight. The rest of the bonus material is extended and deleted interviews, including Nick Mason explaining his knack for staying out of the band's famed internal conflicts. <i>The Story of Wish You Were Here</i> provides no revelations or new insights into the creation of one of the cornerstones of the classic rock pantheon. But it tells the tale well and, let's be honest, after all these years, it remains a compelling one.<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/MusicDvdExclaimca/~4/QgDYptoLQE4" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>2012-09-06T16:39:09+00:00http://exclaim.ca/music/article/pink_floyd_story_of_wish_you_were_here-directed_by_john_edgintonDenise Falzonhttp://exclaim.ca/music/article/kataklysm-iron_will_20_years_determinedIron Will: 20 Years Determined, which is an extensive two-DVD, two-CD collection. For long-time fans, the two-part documentary is the meatiest of the release. The first part features "The Early Years," from]]>Montreal, QC's Kataklysm have been consistently unleashing their signature "Northern hyperblast" style death metal since their 1991 inception. Now, the band receive a much deserved career retrospective with <i>Iron Will: 20 Years Determined</i>, which is an extensive two-DVD, two-CD collection. For long-time fans, the two-part documentary is the meatiest of the release. The first part features "The Early Years," from 1991 to 2004, while the second captures "The Rebirth," from 2004 to 2011, offering a very in-depth look into the history of Kataklysm's origins ― from their rise in the Quebecois death metal scene to present day as one of the most revered Canadian metal acts. Also featured on the second DVD is the band's live, 15-song set at Summer Breeze Open Air 2011, which captures Kataklysm at their finest, performing a wide range of tracks from their latest album, 2010's <i>Heaven's Venom</i>, including "Determined (Vows of Vengeance)," as well as tons of classics like "As I Slither," "Blood on the Swans" and "Manipulator of Souls." The least necessary of the collection is the first CD, which contains the audio of the live Summer Breeze set, and the second CD, which is a "best of" that compiles tracks from most of Kataklysm's catalogue. However, the two DVDs of <i>Iron Will: 20 Years Determined</i> make this release very much worth the purchase.<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/MusicDvdExclaimca/~4/XfgInUl26HQ" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>2012-09-06T16:38:36+00:00http://exclaim.ca/music/article/kataklysm-iron_will_20_years_determinedDaniel Pratthttp://exclaim.ca/music/article/marley-directed_by_kevin_macdonald_2Marley, attempts ]]>Bob Marley's ideals flowed from his lyrics, invoking peace, love and harmony. His music has stood the test of time ― T-shirts are still worn by fans and 420 enthusiasts alike, with Marley's face silkscreened among his native Jamaican colours. Yet for all of the fanaticism over the music and messages, very little about Bob Marley, the man, was known. Director Kevin Macdonald's bio-documentary, <i>Marley</i>, attempts to change this by becoming the first film fully sanctioned by the Marley family, providing full access to the singer's archives and stepping up to provide a plethora of firsthand accounts of his life. Jam-packed with old interviews and concert footage, one would think that would suffice to paint a decent portrait of the legendary Rastafarian, but it is the intimate interviews with those that knew him best that fill in the gaps and bring life to a man that has been dead since 1981. However, for all of the information packed into the 144-minute run-time, there's a sense that something is missing. With such a broad range of interview subjects, there are contradictions on some of the accounts of Marley's life, leading one to believe that he was imperfect and more investigation on his shadowy dealings could have unveiled something more intriguing. Alas, with son Ziggy Marley listed as an executive producer, it can be assumed Macdonald had to tread lightly for this project to ensure familial cooperation. The DVD includes numerous special features, including a commentary from the director and Ziggy, interesting trivia and further background details that weren't in the original version. A segment of a live performance is also included, which will undoubtedly be a highlight for fans. The best feature is the "Children's Memories" segment, where Marley's children share personal memories of their father. It is this segment that provides a sense of endearment of the man, giving a glimpse of his true personality. It's just a shame Macdonald couldn't provide more of this in the actual film.<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/MusicDvdExclaimca/~4/u-xxcYWr6nE" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>2012-08-17T19:44:25+00:00http://exclaim.ca/music/article/marley-directed_by_kevin_macdonald_2Cal MacLeanhttp://exclaim.ca/music/article/big_easy_express_blu-ray-directed_by_emmett_malloyAlmost Famous captured the melancholy, while the documentary Festiv]]>There's a romantic idea of what a life on the road means, especially the one lived by musicians. Something about the rock star life of appearing then disappearing, city to city, fleetingly connecting with strangers is timeless. Several cinematic attempts have been made to portray that mix of fame and anonymity: Cameron Crowe's fictionalized <i>Almost Famous</i> captured the melancholy, while the documentary <i>Festival Express</i> went for the legend. Following in the tradition of those previous releases, whether consciously or not, new documentary <i>Big Easy Express</i> splits the difference and showcases the nostalgia. <i>Big Easy Express</i> follows three bands as they, like the original Festival Express, tour North America by rail, this time to the Southern United States. And what better bands to follow than Edward Sharpe & the Magnetic Zeros, Old Crow Medicine Show and England's Mumford & Sons? With their throwback musical styles, wistful lyrics and vintage aesthetics, everyone aboard the train seems in line with the traditions of touring, train rides and Americana. Something, however, feels amiss and what should feel like an authentic document of life on tour comes across instead like staged snapshot. Alex Ebert (the lead singer of Edward Sharpe) gives a narration to bookend the film, which sounds not just thoroughly scripted but weighed down by its own grandeur. You'd think the musicians here weren't just inventing touring, but the very concept of traveling altogether. Beyond a few brief (and almost certainly rehearsed) interviews, the bulk of <i>Big Easy Express</i> is dedicated to musical performances. Edward Sharpe perform their popular "Home" and Mumford & Sons play "Little Lion Man," so anyone passingly familiar with either band won't be lost. But fans can expect pleasant surprises too, as in one of the film's best sequences, where Mumford & Songs rehearse and then perform "The Cave" with a local high school marching band. In between gigs, the musicians are seen jamming aboard their train, the occasional cigarette in sight, but as should be expected in this modern era of Internet scandals and careful PR, there's no rock'n'roll behaviour to compete with the legend of the original Festival Express. The one winking allusion to everyone drinking "water" might be overkill and, in fact, leaves the whole sanitized affair without much of a story. It's the music alone that carries the film, which at only 67 minutes does so capably. But the half-hour of deleted scenes (mostly additional songs) available on the Blu-Ray and DVD suggests that the film might've originally had a more conventional running time that outstayed its welcome. Worth seeing for the performances and possibly owning for the classy postcard photos that come with the Blu-Ray/DVD combo pack, <i>Big Easy Express</i> disappointingly doesn't leave much of an impression. Maybe you just had to be there.<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/MusicDvdExclaimca/~4/rTfScaaN-YM" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>2012-08-17T19:43:40+00:00http://exclaim.ca/music/article/big_easy_express_blu-ray-directed_by_emmett_malloyIan Gormelyhttp://exclaim.ca/music/article/stone_temple_pilots-alive_in_windy_cityAlive in the Windy City, the comparison seems apt: fairly derivative group pen a series of pretty awesome radio singles before their preening lead singer descends into drug-fuelled oblivion, only to pull himself out and r]]>During their mid-'90s heyday, few would have compared L.A. alt-rockers Stone Temple Pilots to classic-rock radio legends Aerosmith. But watching the perpetually reuniting band's new live DVD, <i>Alive in the Windy City</i>, the comparison seems apt: fairly derivative group pen a series of pretty awesome radio singles before their preening lead singer descends into drug-fuelled oblivion, only to pull himself out and reform the act as a shadow of their former selves. It's no secret that after peaking with their third album, <i>Tiny Music… Songs from the Vatican Gift Shop</i>, Stone Temple Pilots have fallen prey to the law of diminishing returns, something immediately evident from a quick glance at the set list from their 2011 tour, which leaned heavily on the band's first two albums ― 1992's<i> Core</i> and 1994's <i>Purple</i> ― and their most recent self-titled disc. The performance is nothing to write home about; it's competent yet hardly transcendent, filmed with few visual flourishes. Fans are clearly there for the nostalgia, which the band are more than happy to play to, doling out modern-rock radio classics like "Vasoline," "Tripping on a Hole in a Paper Heart" and "Plush," in between too many new cuts. But where previous tours had offered a pleasant ebb and flow to the set with an acoustic interlude, STP circa 2011 are operating on one gear, as quiet numbers like "Sour Girl" and power ballad "Big Empty" fail to match the respective intimacy or massive size of their studio versions. The DVD comes with a bonus interview with the band, who chat about the creation of their new album and do seem to still genuinely like each other. But <i>Alive in the Windy City</i> fails to make the case that Stone Temple Pilots have much to offer the world these days.<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/MusicDvdExclaimca/~4/Iz3QnFCiLac" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>2012-07-23T21:34:35+00:00http://exclaim.ca/music/article/stone_temple_pilots-alive_in_windy_cityIan Gormelyhttp://exclaim.ca/music/article/yellow_submarine-directed_by_george_dunningYellow Submarine is easily the most distinctive and downright strange of their cinematic experiments. Originally released in 1968, and directed by Canadian animator George Dunning, this hand-animated tale chronicles a community called Pepper]]>Often the forgotten Beatles film (likely because of the lack of direct involvement from the Fab Four and the fact that its named after one of the group's silliest tracks), <i>Yellow Submarine</i> is easily the most distinctive and downright strange of their cinematic experiments. Originally released in 1968, and directed by Canadian animator George Dunning, this hand-animated tale chronicles a community called Pepperland that comes under attack by the music-hating Blue Meanies. The Beatles are dragged into the conflict when a sailor named Fred fetches them from Liverpool in a yellow submarine to bring them back to Pepperland to combat the Meanies. If it sounds like a wacked-out, psychedelic fantasy, it's because it is. Melding animation with real-life footage and stills, <i>Yellow Submarine</i> is essentially one of Terry Gilliam's Python animations set to the Beatles' music. And that's the lasting legacy of the film: while the story is a take-it-or-leave-it affair (if you buy in, it's a fantastical tale; if you don't, it's a self-indulgent romp), the animated sequences, featuring songs like "Eleanor Rigby," "When I'm 64" and, of course, the title track, are absolutely beautiful to watch. In that way, <i>Yellow Submarine</i> is actually quite similar to the Beatles' film debut, <i>A Hard Day's Night</i>, whose loose, goofy plot holds together a series of vignettes showcasing their music and personalities. With this latest remastered re-release, the film has never looked or sounded better. The original stills were individually cleaned by hand for the digital debut. Extras include a 1968 making-of feature, original storyboards and pencil drawings, as well as audio commentary from original producer John Coates, with contributions from art director Heinz Edelman. While certainly not the magnum opus in the Beatles' cinematic catalogue, <i>Yellow Submarine</i> is a unique and beautiful artefact of its period, with a timeless visual style that stands up decades later. Years of neglect and rights issues (especially concerning the music) have relegated the film to second-class status. Hopefully now it can take its rightful place in the Beatles' filmography.<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/MusicDvdExclaimca/~4/_mZkN0daiGs" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>2012-07-12T16:43:35+00:00http://exclaim.ca/music/article/yellow_submarine-directed_by_george_dunningIan Gormelyhttp://exclaim.ca/music/article/no_room_for_rockstars-directed_by_parris_pattonNo Room for RockstarsIf you're reading this, chances are you've spent at least one blazing-hot summer day at the Vans Warped Tour. The annual punk/ska/swing/metalcore/whatever's-popular-at-Hot-Topic tour has become so ingrained in our music culture that it's hard to remember a summer without it, even if your feelings towards it are utter disgust at its crass commercialization of a once vibrant underground force. <i>No Room for Rockstars</i>, a new documentary about the touring behemoth, will do little to alleviate feelings that "Warped Tour was better in year X," instead focusing on the fest's modern incarnation, with a little archival footage thrown in for good measure. Director Parris Patton followed deathcore act Suicide Silence, the Dashboard Confessional-esque Never Shout Never, pop star Mike Posner and upstarts Forever Came Calling (who weren't actually on the tour, just shadowing it in a van, peddling their CDs to kids in line) during Warped Tour's 2010 15th anniversary run. Their stories paint a good portrait of the different experiences bands have on the tour: from Chris Ingle of Never Shout Never's disillusionment with the Warped's commercially-driven side to Suicide Silence's get-in-the-van attitude to Posner's cautious appreciation of the whole thing. Tour founder Kevin Lyman gets plenty of air time and comes across as a genuinely nice guy without Patton ever seeming as if he's kowtowing to any sort of pre-arranged agenda, while tour vets like Pennywise and Bouncing Souls explain what keeps them coming back year after year (it's the band camaraderie). Extras include some generous extended interviews and performances with acts like Bouncing Souls and Andrew W.K. and a bonus <i>Warped Tour Greatest</i> Hits CD that feels more like "here's ten songs we were able to clear in time." Despite its somewhat erroneous title (a number of bands have become rock stars while on the tour, while even more have returned for triumphant victory laps), <i>No Room For Rockstars</i> does an excellent job of summing up Warped Tour's M.O. from multiple perspectives. Yeah, it's not the tour it used to be ― and that's exactly why it's still a going concern, for better or worse.<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/MusicDvdExclaimca/~4/3Fzk4u6CHBQ" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>2012-07-12T16:43:02+00:00http://exclaim.ca/music/article/no_room_for_rockstars-directed_by_parris_pattonMichael Edwardshttp://exclaim.ca/music/article/fuck_you_fucking_noise_in_china_now-directed_by_guy-marc_hinant_dominique_lohleFuck You: Fucking Noise In China Now. He and Dominique Lohle head over to China to talk t]]>Discovering the personal motivations for a musician to make the music they do is a mainstay of interviews. It is, however, a little more unusual for an interviewer to try and tell the musician what their motivation is and trying to force the issue when they disagree. But that's exactly what Guy-Marc Hinant attempts during <i>Fuck You: Fucking Noise In China Now. </i>He and Dominique Lohle head over to China to talk to members of the noise music scene, with the idea that it exists as a result of the suffocating political environment. They are met with disagreement and a great deal of apathy from the likes of Torturing Nurse and Wang Chandcun. The closest the filmmakers get to their original premise of the music being a response to politics comes via the interview with Sun Meng Jin, who actually lived through the cultural revolution, although his anecdotes are more about resentment than inspiration. Polish musician Zbigniew Karkowski is happy to stoke the fire with his many opinions, although they are likely more applicable to him than anyone else. The majority of the interviews are awkward and confrontational ― they do indirectly offer insight into the music scene when the subjects are given a chance to talk, however. The age of many of the musicians may be the reason they haven't really given much thought to their motivations, but it quickly becomes clear that they are more interested in talking about music than politics. Too often the interviews appear to be the punctuation to the performances, but that isn't a huge issue because those performances are the most satisfying part of <i>Fuck You. </i>Be it the rehearsals or the live concerts, the music ends up saying more than the interviews ever do. <i>Fuck You: Fucking Noise In China Now </i>is a warts and all documentary ― interview subjects are partially obscured and it doesn't appear that much has been left on the cutting room floor. It feels long at 100 minutes, although the lack of structure contributes towards that ― there's a great deal of meandering, as if the filmmakers are figuring out how the final product will look as they go. It does add rawness to the finished documentary, but it could have been tightened up significantly. Ultimately, the flaws make this a frustrating documentary, which could have really benefitted from a lighter touch from the obviously invested filmmakers.<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/MusicDvdExclaimca/~4/5fYtBqrXAYg" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>2012-06-08T20:06:44+00:00http://exclaim.ca/music/article/fuck_you_fucking_noise_in_china_now-directed_by_guy-marc_hinant_dominique_lohleIan Gormelyhttp://exclaim.ca/music/article/dinosaur_jr_live_at_930_club_in_hands_of_fans-directed_by_dave_markeyAwesome; I Fuckin' Shot That. But with Dave Markey (the man behind legendary tour doc 1991: The Year Punk Broke) running the show, In the Hands of the Fans c]]>Dinosaur Jr. are one of the least gimmicky bands around, so the idea that this gig at Washington, DC's 9:30 Club was shot by six fans watching from the audience is a little out of synch, not to mention a bit of a rip-off of the Beastie Boys' <i>Awesome; I Fuckin' Shot That</i>. But with Dave Markey (the man behind legendary tour doc <i>1991: The Year Punk Broke</i>) running the show, <i>In the Hands of the Fans</i> comes across as a pretty terrific document of Dinosaur's past, as seen through the eyes of their surprisingly fruitful reunion. The impetus behind all this of, course, was a 2011 tour where the trio – singer/guitarist J Mascis, bassist/singer Lou Barlow and drummer Murph – chose to play their third and arguably most beloved album, <i>Bug</i>, in its entirety, which the group execute with aplomb. The film captures the ferocious presence of the band onstage, even while Mascis sways back and forth, whipping out face-melting guitar solos as if he were turning the page in a magazine. The handheld footage from the fans looks surprisingly good and as back-up, Markey set up a number of stationary cams around the stage, which when paired together, do a great job documenting the performance. Their set includes performances of "Sludgefeast" and "Raisins" tacked onto the end – <i>Bug</i> is, after all, just 35 minutes long, and "In a Jar" and "the Wagon" appear as DVD extras. Backstage interviews with the lucky fans picked to film the show prove somewhat awkward, but Henry Rollins' onstage chat with the band pre-show about Dinosaur's early days is interesting, even if Mascis stays pretty silent throughout. Mike Watt, Ian Mackaye and Keith Morris, whose band OFF! were opening the tour, all provide testimonials and Markey even gets a brief solo interview with Mascis outside the venue before sound check. Put together, this all makes for a surprisingly robust and well executed release, when the whole exercise could have come across as a between tour/album cash grab. This is for both casual and serious Dinosaur fans alike.<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/MusicDvdExclaimca/~4/5HaZ66QBmBo" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>2012-04-13T19:59:22+00:00http://exclaim.ca/music/article/dinosaur_jr_live_at_930_club_in_hands_of_fans-directed_by_dave_markeyIan Gormelyhttp://exclaim.ca/music/article/public_image_ltd_live_at_rockpalast_1983-directed_by_christian_wagnerThe Flowers of Romance and 1984's This is What You Want… This What You Get (on the same tour that yielded 1983's Live in Tokyo), Live at Rockpalast could be the greatest summation of Public Image Ltd.'s early years, featuring tracks from their first three ground-breaking post-punk classics, as well as their at the time yet-to-be-released dance-pop diversion. But the]]>Recorded between 1981's <i>The Flowers of Romance</i> and 1984's <i>This is What You Want… This What You Get </i>(on the same tour that yielded 1983's <i>Live in Tokyo</i>), <i>Live at Rockpalast</i> could be the greatest summation of Public Image Ltd.'s early years, featuring tracks from their first three ground-breaking post-punk classics, as well as their at the time yet-to-be-released dance-pop diversion. But the film – a performance from German television program <i>Rockpalast</i> – captures the group on the wrong side of this transition. By the time of the tour, both Keith Levene and Jah Wobble – key to the band's early sound – had left, leaving just John Lydon and drummer Martin Atkins as the only classic-era members left amongst a trio of hired guns (guitarist Joseph Guida, bass player Louis Bernardi and keyboard player Arthur Stead). The song selections are topnotch, but there's a slickness to the playing that rubs against the spacey griminess of their recordings. The band are tight though, and Lydon is at his atonal best, wandering around stage and hopping down into the photo pit while a game crowd of German fans pogo along to every track, particularly the mid-set selection of the Pistol's "Anarchy in the UK." Production-wise, the sound is great, but the video quality quickly gives away the era – there's a distinct videotape feel to the entire proceedings, which is only enhanced by today's hi-def hardware. Of course, that's part of the appeal, though the lack of ambitious camera work takes away from whatever excitement was present in the performance. The only extras are outtakes from rehearsals of "Annalisa" and "Chant," where the levels fade in and out (only the bass and drums are audible at the beginning) and an interview with Lydon in typical media-whore mode, slagging off the program. Though it just misses the mark, <i>Live at Rockplast</i> is a great performance film that sheds more light on a band that remain forever criminally overshadowed by Lydon's previous work.<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/MusicDvdExclaimca/~4/ksvci7eTVBs" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>2012-04-13T19:58:29+00:00http://exclaim.ca/music/article/public_image_ltd_live_at_rockpalast_1983-directed_by_christian_wagnerIan Gormelyhttp://exclaim.ca/music/article/echotone-directed_by_nathan_christEchotone, where A/V Club city editor Sean O'Neal throws up his hands in exasperation as scene stalwart/champion/label head Daniel Perlaky tries in vain to convince O'Neal that local band the White White Lights (who are signed to Perlaky's label) are in fact "the future of music." His reaction so perfectly captures the feeling of]]>There's a moment in Nathan Christs' new documentary of the Austin, TX music scene, <i>Echotone</i>, where A/V Club city editor Sean O'Neal throws up his hands in exasperation as scene stalwart/champion/label head Daniel Perlaky tries in vain to convince O'Neal that local band the White White Lights (who are signed to Perlaky's label) are in fact "the future of music." His reaction so perfectly captures the feeling of watching Christ's film, which is filled with blind boosterism for the scene. If the doc is to be believed, the only difference between this Southern bastion of liberalism and other cities is its insistence on calling itself "the live music capital of the world." Of course, this couldn't be further from the truth – every city's music scene has a defining characteristic. But in arguing that Austin's scene is being swept aside, thanks to rapid, expansive development and the faltering financial stakes of the music industry, he forgot to explain what makes Austin so special in the first place. Christ frames the film around u- and-coming Lost Highway artist Black Joe Daniels, major label victim Bill Baird, Belaire's Cari Palazzolo and scene stalwart/champion Daniel Perlaky, but fails to reach beyond "why can't we just get paid to play our music?" types of laments. The extras, or B-sides, are actually far more germane to the film's central conceit than much of the material in the actual flick, particularly the conversation with Alex Maas from the Black Angels. The issues Austin faces are real and could be a microcosm for music scenes across North America. <i>Echotone</i> suffers from a myopic view of an increasingly global music scene though. The filmmakers clearly made this doc for the musicians and music fans in Austin, for whom knowledge of the scene's issues is assumed. But for anyone living outside of Austin, their message is lost in a sea of fragmented clips and whining musicians.<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/MusicDvdExclaimca/~4/SKlvxnkumFY" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>2012-04-13T19:57:44+00:00http://exclaim.ca/music/article/echotone-directed_by_nathan_christIan Gormelyhttp://exclaim.ca/music/article/upside_down-directed_by_danny_oconnorUpside Down chronicles Creation's rise and inevitable fall. It's a familiar tale for anyone with a passing interest in rock's business]]>It's fitting that Alan McGee and Bobby Gillespie first bonded at a Thin Lizzy concert; despite its cache as one of the UK's most respected and successful indie labels, Creation Records' acts often comported themselves as rock stars, even when public interest dictated otherwise. <i>Upside Down</i> chronicles Creation's rise and inevitable fall. It's a familiar tale for anyone with a passing interest in rock's business end, but few labels can boast a roster as era-defining as Creation. Members of the Jesus and Mary Chain, Primal Scream, Teenage Fanclub, Swervedriver, My Bloody Valentine (director Danny O'Connor managed to score a coveted interview with Kevin Shields, who might be the world's most mild-mannered, reclusive genius), Oasis and McGee, along with friends and former staff, all appear to help make sense of the label's drug-fuelled history. Inspired after seeing Television Personalities, McGee, along with Biff Bang Pow! bandmates Dick Green and Joe Foster, founded the label to put out records from their group and other like-minded acts. But McGee hit gold when he signed, and went on to manage, fledgling noise-pop act the Jesus and Mary Chain, the profits from which he funnelled into early releases from Primal Scream and My Bloody Valentine. But the discovery of acid-house and ecstasy by McGee and virtually everyone associated with the label changed everything. Andrew Weatherall's reworking of Primal Scream's "I'm Losing More Than I'll Ever Have" into scene anthem "Loaded" brought the band and Creation to new heights of fame and excess. McGee admits he was off his head for the first half of the '90s. A drug-fuelled breakdown mid-way through the decade ensured that he missed Creation's highest of (natural) highs when Oasis managed to (fleetingly) conquer the U.S. Most of the people involved say McGee was never the same after the breakdown. Having already given up much of the label's autonomy to Sony, Creation shuttered its doors just before the end of the century. O'Connor certainly does nothing to dispel the legend of Creation. As such, many of the label's lesser lights – Felt, the Weather Prophets, the Boo Radleys – get scant, if any, mention, in favour of bigger acts and personalities like Gillespie, Noel Gallagher, Jim Reid and Irvine Welsh, for some reason. There are also only bare bones of extras. But in upholding the myth, <i>Upside Down</i> manages to dig up enough dirt to make this a worthwhile flick for anyone with a passing interest in British music.<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/MusicDvdExclaimca/~4/uf1_knaoNw4" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>2012-04-13T19:56:43+00:00http://exclaim.ca/music/article/upside_down-directed_by_danny_oconnorDenise Falzonhttp://exclaim.ca/music/article/volbeat-live_from_beyond_hellabove_heavenLive From Beyond Hell/Above Heaven. The DVD features concert footage from a sold-out hometown show in Copenhagen, as well as from a show at the House of Blues in Anaheim, C]]>Denmark's heavy metal/rockabilly rollers Volbeat are simply one of those bands that captivate with their live performance, regardless of whether or not you know the material. It's fitting, then, that they've released a new live concert DVD, <i>Live From Beyond Hell/Above Heaven</i>. The DVD features concert footage from a sold-out hometown show in Copenhagen, as well as from a show at the House of Blues in Anaheim, CA and from their set at Rock Am Ring in Germany. Frontman Michael Poulsen breathes blues-inspired soul into the band, while maintaining a distinct James Hetfield-style live presence on "Maybellene I Hofteholder," from 2008's <i>Guitar Gangsters & Cadillac Blood</i>, as well as Dusty Springfield's "I Only Wanna Be With You." But it's fan-favourite "Pool of Booze, Booze, Booza," from their 2005 debut, <i>The Strength / The Sound / The Songs</i>, that is the most electrifying to watch live. With tracks dripping with Elvis Presley and Johnny Cash influences, plus a stage presence that captures the heaviness of Motörhead and the punk attitude of the Misfits, Volbeat's <i>Live From Beyond Hell/Above Heaven</i> is a must-watch for any fan, whether they've had the pleasure of seeing these Danish lads live or not.<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/MusicDvdExclaimca/~4/jhWOB5nQMcg" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>2012-01-28T19:24:20+00:00http://exclaim.ca/music/article/volbeat-live_from_beyond_hellabove_heavenGreg Pratthttp://exclaim.ca/music/article/god_bless_ozzy_osbourne-directed_by_mike_fleiss_mike_piscitelliThis feature-length documentary came to be because Jack Osbourne, son of legendary metal crooner Ozzy Osbourne, wanted the world to see his dad for what he really is. Not the wild young drunk of the '80s or the mumbling old drunk of the '00s, but the man behind the persona, the man stuck somewhere in between. Through excellent archival footage dating back to Ozzy's tenure in Black Sabbath, the story is told of an Ozzy riddled with insecurities and a father who, despite fame and fortune, was never there for his kids when they were younger. But it's an inspirational tale, as Ozzy is now sober and the father he wants to be, and is much more coherent than on <i>The Osbournes</i>. His career is nowhere near over, but if it were, this well-made doc would be a great way to cap it off. As is, it's a reminder, a fun journey and an inspirational view. Extras include a handful of mainly forgettable deleted scenes, a fun interview with Jack and Ozzy, and some footage of the film's debut at the Tribeca Film Festival. It's refreshing to not be bombarded with hours of sub-par footage as extras, and, really, the movie says it all, says it loud and says it proud. And while non-metalheads can get something out of the rags-to-riches and coming-clean storylines, this is definitely one for the longhairs.<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/MusicDvdExclaimca/~4/Op61mG2selk" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>2012-01-05T17:02:28+00:00http://exclaim.ca/music/article/god_bless_ozzy_osbourne-directed_by_mike_fleiss_mike_piscitelliIan Gormelyhttp://exclaim.ca/music/article/talking_heads-chronologyStop Making Sense, generally considered to be the greatest concert film of all time. So any collection of live performances from the band is going to have an incredibly steep hill to climb. Perhaps then it's better to view this hodgepodge of performances as a prequel to that famed film, chronologically charting the quartet's evolution from wiry art-schoo]]>It's worth noting that Talking Heads are the band behind <i>Stop Making Sense</i>, generally considered to be the greatest concert film of all time. So any collection of live performances from the band is going to have an incredibly steep hill to climb. Perhaps then it's better to view this hodgepodge of performances as a prequel to that famed film, chronologically charting the quartet's evolution from wiry art-school punks to funky global rock stars before retiring from the road all together. The stiff CBGB performance from 1975 barely hints at the live force they would become, but helps to put in perspective just how out of place Talking Heads were. By the time they hit <i>American Bandstand</i> with their cover of Al Green's "Take Me to the River," it was clear the group had found their groove. The DVD ends with a performance of "Burning Down the House" on <i>Late Night with David Letterman</i>, displaying many of the theatrical elements that the group would exploit with <i>Stop Making Sense</i> director Jonathan Demme. It ends, fittingly, with a performance of "Life During Wartime," from the band's 2002 Rock 'n' Roll Induction Ceremony. The deluxe edition of the DVD comes beautifully packaged like a hardcover book and includes a lengthy, unedited essay Lester Bangs wrote as a review of <i>Fear of Music </i>for <i>The Village Voice</i> in August of 1979. Bonus features include a great 35-minute doc from 1979 that finds the band discussing their history and music up to that point. Also included is a 1978 interview with David Byrne and audio commentary from all four band members. While some might argue with the selection of tracks included (many of the band's later hits are missing, while rarities like "Love→Building On Fire" make a welcome appearance), this collection is essential to understanding the live evolution of one of music's most interesting and challenging groups.<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/MusicDvdExclaimca/~4/idkkifjLV7A" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>2011-12-21T18:25:35+00:00http://exclaim.ca/music/article/talking_heads-chronologyMichael Edwardshttp://exclaim.ca/music/article/placebo-we_come_in_pieces_blu-rayBattle for the Sun) and apparently played to more than two-and-a-half million fans during their last world tour. Obviously some people still love them and that's very clear on their second live DVD, We Come In Pieces. Filmed in London at the Bri]]>While Placebo might have disappeared off the musical map for many, they still have a solid enough fan base that they've reached their sixth studio album (2009's <i>Battle for the Sun</i>) and apparently played to more than two-and-a-half million fans during their last world tour. Obviously some people still love them and that's very clear on their second live DVD, <i>We Come In Pieces</i>. Filmed in London at the Brixton Academy, this is Placebo in front of a crowd that would be happy no matter what they did. As a concert DVD, it's pretty solid, although the frenetic cuts and edits get a little exhausting after the first couple of songs. I'm imagining they're used to make up for the fact that despite Brian Molko's obvious charisma, the band aren't the most interesting to watch onstage, due to their businesslike delivery. The songs lean heavily on their more recent albums, meaning many of their earlier singles are overlooked. There's also a mundane cover of Nirvana's "All Apologies" thrown in. Basically, it's a concert. Both the Blu-Ray and double-DVD versions include <i>Coming Up For Air</i>, an hour-long documentary made during the 20-month tour, and it's a great deal more interesting simply because it gives better insight into the band. Molko does make a lot of affected monologues about touring and Placebo in general, but that aside, it's an entertaining video diary. It would be hard to recommend the single-DVD version because the concert by itself is too one-dimensional to appeal to anyone but rabid followers, but the two parts together offer a more well-rounded representation of a group midway through their second decade together. Also included are six more live tracks recorded at various times and locations during the tour, and a music video for "Trigger Happy Hands," which is ten minutes of weirdness with clowns.<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/MusicDvdExclaimca/~4/bTxPkh25w7k" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>2011-12-16T21:30:56+00:00http://exclaim.ca/music/article/placebo-we_come_in_pieces_blu-ray